Shulian-2.15.09-Screech Owl Research (Sunny Interview)

Yesterday Ava and I went to Central Park and stopped at the Nature Center near the lake.  This was where we were scheduled to meet up with park ranger, Sunny.  We arrived at the center around 4:15, but Sunny wasn’t available until 5:00 because of an animal emergency that needed to be taken care of.  At 5:00 Sunny took me and Ava into what I am guessing was an educational student room, where the Park teaches kids about the wildlife.  There were chairs neatly lined up in rows.  Ava and I sat in the front, our parents sat behind us in the second row and Sunny positioned herself upfront.  We admitted that we were very nervous.  However, after the first question was asked (about screech owls) we were on a roll.  This wasn’t a normal sustainability visit; this was a 30-minute interview (that was video taped) just talking about screech owls in Central Park.  We mostly talked about the owls’ stay in the park.  A couple years ago Central Park rangers decided to release twelve screech owls back into the park, after they mysteriously disappeared years before.  Some of the questions Ava and I asked Sunny were…(1) where they liked to nest, (2) how do the park rangers take care of them/keep track of them, (3) are the owls fed by the park rangers, and finally (4) if the park rangers were expecting to release any more owls into the park. Sunny answered many of these questions and seemed to be well informed.  She thought it was a great idea to educate others about the owls, because she believed that the more people know, the safer the owls will be in the future.  When Sunny was done talking and we were done asking questions we thanked her, and took some pictures – (shown below).  It was a great experience, and was very fulfilling.  A feeling that makes you think to yourself “wow, I’m really helping these owls.”  Ava and I still have plenty more visits that are briefly planned out.  We plan to visit an organization in New Jersey focusing on birds of pray – the screech owl is one of them.  Also we plan to interview a bird watcher, who Ava met earlier in the day when she went on a bird walk in the Botanical Gardens, which I didn’t attend.  Along with this we are considering making a plan with Sarah Barlow’s Aunt who specializes and knows a lot about birds.  Lastly, next Sunday Ava and I already have a date to do a bird walk late in the evening in Central Park.   Before Sunday my goal is to do a little more research on screech owls, so I can be more informed.  I already have some websites planned out, to which I will visit soon.  For our April presentation Ava and I are considering having the kids dissect owl pellets, which we will collect on our bird walks.  We think it would be fun and different plus educational.  However, this is just in the planning stage, and can likely be replaced with a different idea.  Overall I really enjoyed our first visit, and I am looking forward to the upcoming ones!