What is it Wendnesday: January 23, 2019

Can you identify what's in this photo?

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

the day after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on January 23, 2019. 

And the answer is....

This is a close up of the beak and feathers of a screech owl 

in LEEP’s Discovery Room. 

One of Pennsylvania’s smallest owls at about 10 inches tall, screech owls can be either gray or a reddish-brown color like this one. 

Screech owls are the owls we most frequently hear at Lutherlyn: their main call is a long descending “whinny” or tremolo that doesn’t sound much like the “whoo” we usually associate with owls. These night-time predators eat small mammals like mice and voles, but also insects, amphibians, and small birds. They are predators but also prey – larger barred owls (which we also sometimes hear at Lutherlyn) are known to eat screech owls.

When you’re at Lutherlyn, stop by the Discovery Room in the Nature Center to see screech owls, a barn owl, and other fascinating animal displays. Or better yet, come on a night hike with LEEP and maybe you will hear an owl yourself!

On Saturday February 2^nd  LEEP is hosting special night-time Saturday Safari from 6:00-8:00 pm. We’ll take a night hike, learn about our night vision, listen for night sounds, look for animal tracks in the snow, and check out some winter constellations (weather permitting). Registration deadline is January 28 – check out www.Lutherlyn.com/safari for more info and to register!

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!