THE DAILY BS: HOW MUCH CAN YOU HANDLE?
SPARE ME THE BS (I’ve got things to do).
- A rare family of barn owls has nested inside a water tower on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, near Central Park.
- Experts say it is the first documented nesting by barn owls in Manhattan in modern recorded history.
- Residents initially mistook the birds’ eerie nighttime screeches for someone in distress; now crowds gather to watch the feathered newcomers.
LAY IT ON ME (I’ve got time).
New York City’s Upper West Side has a new celebrity family.
They’re nocturnal, extremely noisy, live in an unusual penthouse, and apparently have no interest in paying Manhattan rent.
They’re barn owls. And they have taken up residence inside a water tower near Central Park. The unusual discovery has attracted birdwatchers, photographers and curious residents hoping to catch a glimpse of the birds emerging after sunset.
According to the Associated Press, the nesting site is near West 75th Street, close to Central Park West.
Experts say the sighting is exceptional.
“It was, like, totally shocking,” Andrew Farnsworth, a migration ecologist at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, said.
He explained that researchers know of no other documented instance of barn owls nesting in Manhattan in modern recorded history. And the neighborhood’s introduction to its new residents was anything but peaceful.
People began hearing strange nighttime screeches in September.
One resident, Thomas Obersteiner, said the sounds were so alarming that he thought someone was “being murdered outside.”
He and his wife sometimes rushed into their children’s bedroom, concerned that the noise might be a child in distress. Instead, it turned out to be the neighborhood’s new feathered tenants.
Barn owls don’t make the familiar hooting sounds people often associate with owls. Their calls can be piercing, eerie screeches. Which is certainly one way to introduce yourself in a densely populated neighborhood.
Local birdwatcher David Barrett has observed at least one adult and five fledgling owls at the water tower. Some observers believe the family includes two adults and six young birds, although not all have been counted together.
The birds have turned an ordinary rooftop structure into a gathering place for nature enthusiasts. Photographers are appearing at dusk hoping for sightings, and some residents have even opened their rooftop viewing areas to visitors.
The excitement follows New York’s earlier fascination with famous birds, including Flaco the eagle-owl and Pale Male the red-tailed hawk.
But unlike most Manhattan celebrities, these newcomers aren’t promoting a movie, launching a podcast or arguing about politics. They’re simply raising a family.
And in a city where unusual neighbors are practically a tradition, they’ve managed to stand out without even owning a television.
For once, the loudest creatures on the Upper West Side aren’t attending a protest. They’re just trying to get the kids to sleep.
DBS WIRE SOURCES (I’ve got all day).
- Associated Press — Rare barn owl family becomes Manhattan’s latest attraction
- ABC7 New York — Barn owls make rare home on the Upper West Side
