[Length 20 in. Wingspan 30 in.]

This drake Surf Scoter was photographed along the beach at Cape May, New Jersey. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm ED f4.5 lens on Kodachrome 200 film. (Date: May 1982)

[Length 21 in. Wingspan 34 in.]

The male White-winged Scoter is a sea duck with an all black body, a small white eye patch, and a red bill which is covered by feathers on its upper half. The female is a dull brownish color, with a grayish patch over the ear and another in front of the eye. A white wing patch is often visible near the rear when the bird is in the water. In flight the white speculum (trailing edge of the inner wing), for which the bird is named, is easily seen. White-winged Scoters breed in central Alaska, and western and central Canada. In winter they move south along the coasts and are found from the Aleutian Islands and the southern coast of Alaska to Baja California in the west, and eastern Canada to the Carolinas in the east. This female White-winged Scoter was photographed at Bodega Bay, California. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm ED f4.5 lens on Kodachrome 64 film. (Date: November 1981)

[Length 21 in. Wingspan 34 in.]

This drake White-winged Scoter was photographed at Montauk, Long Island, New York. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm EDAF f4.0 lens on Kodachrome 200 film. (Date: February 1995)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 20 in.]

Screech-Owls are probably the most common owls in the United States. They are small, gray or reddish colored owls, with heavy streaking, small ear tufts, and glaring yellow eyes. They occur in a variety of habitats throughout the US and southern and western Canada, including forests, swamps, orchards, parks, and suburban woodlots. In the southwest, they also occur in desert areas. The Western Screech-Owl (Otus kennicottii) and the Eastern Screech-Owl (Otus asio) were once considered to be the same species. They are identical in plumage and overall appearance, and are best separated by range and vocalization differences. The songs and vocalizations of the two Screech-Owls are very different. The Eastern Screech-Owl gives either a quavering, descending series of whistled notes (which sounds a little like the "whinnying" of a horse), or a long, hollow-sounding trill. The Western Screech-Owl gives either a series of hollow, whistled notes which accelerate like the rhythm of a bouncing ball, or a short trill followed immediately by a longer trill. This captive gray-phase Eastern Screech-Owl was photographed at a wildlife rehabilitation center (photo courtesy Art and Hanna Richard). Photo taken with a 50mm f1.4 Pentax SMC Macro Lens on Kodachrome 64 film. (Date: Unknown)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 20 in.]

Screech-Owls are probably the most common owls in the United States. They are small, gray or reddish colored owls, with heavy streaking, small ear tufts, and glaring yellow eyes. They occur in a variety of habitats throughout the US and southern and western Canada, including forests, swamps, orchards, parks, and suburban woodlots. In the southwest, they also occur in desert areas. The Western Screech-Owl (Otus kennicottii) and the Eastern Screech-Owl (Otus asio) were once considered to be the same species. They are identical in plumage and overall appearance, and are best separated by range and vocalization differences. The songs and vocalizations of the two Screech-Owls are very different. The Eastern Screech-Owl gives either a quavering, descending series of whistled notes (which sounds a little like the "whinnying" of a horse), or a long, hollow-sounding trill. The Western Screech-Owl gives either a series of hollow, whistled notes which accelerate like the rhythm of a bouncing ball, or a short trill followed immediately by a longer trill. This captive red-phase Eastern Screech-Owl was photographed at a wildlife rehabilitation center (photo courtesy Art and Hanna Richard). Photo taken with a 50mm f1.4 Pentax SMC Macro Lens on Kodachrome 64 film. (Date: Unknown)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 20 in.]

Screech-Owls are probably the most common owls in the United States. They are small, gray or reddish colored owls, with heavy streaking, small ear tufts, and glaring yellow eyes. They occur in a variety of habitats throughout the US and southern and western Canada, including forests, swamps, orchards, parks, and suburban woodlots. In the southwest, they also occur in desert areas. The Western Screech-Owl (Otus kennicottii) and the Eastern Screech-Owl (Otus asio) were once considered to be the same species. They are identical in plumage and overall appearance, and are best separated by range and vocalization differences. The songs and vocalizations of the two Screech-Owls are very different. The Eastern Screech-Owl gives either a quavering, descending series of whistled notes (which sounds a little like the "whinnying" of a horse), or a long, hollow-sounding trill. The Western Screech-Owl gives either a series of hollow, whistled notes which accelerate like the rhythm of a bouncing ball, or a short trill followed immediately by a longer trill. These adorable baby Eastern Screech-Owls were raised in a nest box put up in a tree at the edge of a trailer park in heart of the Texas Hill Country. Photo taken with a Nikkor 180mm EDAF f2.8 lens on Kodachrome 200 film. (Date: May 1999)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 20 in.]

This Eastern Screech-Owl was photographed at Dewind's Feeders, Saleneno, TX. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm EDAF-S f4 lens + Nikkor TC14E II 1.4x Teleconverter (EFL=630mm) on a Nikon D100 camera. (Date: January 14, 2005)

[Length 8.5 in. Wingspan 20 in.]

This Eastern Screech-Owl was photographed at Dewind's Feeders, Saleneno, TX. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm EDAF-S f4 lens + Nikkor TC14E II 1.4x Teleconverter (EFL=630mm) on a Nikon D100 camera. (Date: January 14, 2005)