This has been a great winter for owl-watching along Disposal Road. Not only are the Snowies still around, but earlier in the year we had some great sightings of Short-eared Owls and Barn Owls as well.

Fred Nisenholz was nice enough to share several of his Short-ear shots. (Thanks, Fred!)

Note: Next week’s South Bergenite will feature a column about Short-eared owls, featuring NJMC naturalist Mike Newhouse and one of Fred’s photos. (Thanks, Mike and Fred!)

(Also a big thank you to everyone else who sent in owl pix.)

Photo by Fred Nisenholz

Don Torino’s latest column for wildnewjersey.tv is called “Snowy Owls, Cabin Fever, and Signs of Spring.”

Here’s a sample:

As my cabin fever was beginning to reach epidemic proportions, I knew myself and many others were in dire need of a remedy for dealing with impassable trails and closed parks for the last two months.

This time we were going to beat the upcoming “Snowmageddon” and sneak in a long overdue field trip to DeKorte Park, the sure cure for what was ailing all of us.

There is something about a Snowy Owl that helps people forget. As we stood along a snow filled Disposal Road, maneuvered around icy puddles, pulled down our woolen hats over our ears we watched with wonder, some for the first time, a magnificent Snowy Owl perched for all to see on the nearby landfill.

There was no talk of tomorrow’s snow fall, no worries about the morning commute or even if our towns would have enough salt for the roads. We just took in its beauty and talked about how lucky we were to be there on this day. It’s amazing what a single bird can do for the human spirit.

The link is here.