I added another bird to my life list this week. Well, make that two new birds.
They were Eastern Screech Owls, little 6-to-9-inch-tall owls that I spotted along Bio Lab Road at the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. I say two new birds for me because I saw two different kinds of Screech Owls.
Most Eastern Screech Owls are gray, but about one-third are reddish-brown in color. Surprisingly I saw a couple of the red morph versions of the owls but only one from the more dominate gray-color family. Both types were seen nesting in hollowed-out parts of dead palm trees, but I did get to see one reddish version sitting outside a palm around sunset.
They’re fun to try to spot along Bio Lab Road, but they weren’t the only birds I saw along the route.
Eastern Screech Owl (Red Morph), Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, May 2025.Eastern Screech Owl (Red Morph), Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, May 2025.Eastern Screech Owl (Red Morph), Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, May 2025.Eastern Screech Owl (Red Morph) sleeping, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, May 2025.Eastern Screech Owl, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, May 2025.Semipalmated Plover, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, May 2025.Juvenile Tricolored Heron, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, May 2025.Juvenile Little Blue Heron, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, May 2025.Anhinga, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, May 2025.Snowy Egret, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, May 2025.Roseate Spoonbill, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, May 2025.
It wasn’t until fairly recently that Black Point Wildlife Drive and Bio Lab Road re-opened. Some other areas still remain closed because of high water or flooding damage.
