{"id":14800,"date":"2020-10-19T06:30:00","date_gmt":"2020-10-19T10:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/?p=14800"},"modified":"2020-10-16T15:05:51","modified_gmt":"2020-10-16T19:05:51","slug":"take-5-whos-seen-a-saw-whet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/take-5-whos-seen-a-saw-whet\/","title":{"rendered":"Take 5: Who’s Seen a Saw-whet?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Northern Saw-whet Owl<\/a> is an small, elusive creature. It clocks in at no more than 4 ounces and is about the size of a robin, but is still a fearsome hunter of small mammals (and occasionally small birds). Nocturnal and secretive, it is rare to spot one in the wild, but ongoing banding and tracking efforts<\/a> have shown they are far more abundant than they seem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wondering about the name? It comes from the sound they make, which early birders like John James Audubon<\/a> compared to the sound of a saw blade being sharpened (“to whet” is to hone or sharpen a blade).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While many saw-whets overwinter in Massachusetts, a good number also migrate south for the winter, and usually around this time of year and into early November. Keep an eye on cedar trees or dense thickets for owls roosting during the day, and you might just get lucky, but in the meantime, here are five photos of saw-whet owls you can enjoy right now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Northern Saw-whet Owl \u00a9 Heather Demick<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Northern
Northern Saw-whet Owl \u00a9 Jennifer Johnston<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Northern
Northern Saw-whet Owl \u00a9 Diane Koske<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Northern
Northern Saw-whet Owl \u00a9 Janice Berte<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Northern Saw-whet owl at the Drumlin Farm bird banding and research station<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Northern Saw-whet Owl is an small, elusive creature. It clocks in at no more than 4 ounces and is about the size of a robin, but is still a fearsome hunter of small mammals (and occasionally small birds). Nocturnal and secretive, it is rare to spot one in the wild, but ongoing banding and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":68,"featured_media":14808,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[6,158],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14800","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","category-take-5"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/10\/Saw-whet-Owl_Heather-Cooper_OK-TO-USE.jpg.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3t87A-3QI","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2808,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/meet-our-tiniest-owl\/","url_meta":{"origin":14800,"position":0},"title":"Meet Our Tiniest Owl","author":"Rosemary","date":"October 2, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"The northern saw-whet owl (Aegolius acadicus) is the smallest owl in Massachusetts. As a nearly silent, nocturnal bird of deep woods, it\u2019s also one of the hardest to spot. Identifying the Saw-whet If you\u2019re lucky enough to see this bird, the first thing you may notice is the size. 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For example, the white-tailed deer is named for its bright, flashing tail, and the northern red bellied snake has a ruby-red belly. But other names have more mysterious origins, and their meanings have become lost with the passage of time. Here are a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Nature Notes"","block_context":{"text":"Nature Notes","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/nature-notes\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2015\/06\/saw-whet-Jennifer-Johnston.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2015\/06\/saw-whet-Jennifer-Johnston.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2015\/06\/saw-whet-Jennifer-Johnston.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13563,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/my-funny-nature-valentines-2020\/","url_meta":{"origin":14800,"position":2},"title":"My Funny {Nature} Valentine’s 2020","author":"Ryan D.","date":"February 12, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Happy Valentine\u2019s Day from Mass Audubon! Show your nature-loving sweetheart how much you care with one of these \"punny\" nature valentines\u2014or better yet,\u00a0consider making a donation\u00a0in honor of your special someone and share some love for our mission to protect the nature of Massachusetts, too. 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