Monitoring owls and woodpeckers with Alutaguse Junior Rangers

Last weekend the Junior Rangers of Alutaguse came together in Iisaku. The seminar focused on the owl and woodpecker species of Estonia which were introduced by Tarmo Evestus. Among other things we learned how owls locate their prey and how they fly without making a sound. Also how a drumming woodpecker manages to avoid headaches. We then tested our newly gained knowledge in a game of Jeopardy.

Durning dusktime we proceeded into the woods to bait owls to make sure which owl species inhabit the local forest. At first we could only hear falling snow. And then, like a shadow, a Ural owl glided over the forest path and vocally signaled that this was its home.

Sleep time was short that night – we had to wake up after 5 o’clock and head to the next forest. In the old woodland we heared the great spotted woodpecker, the Northern goshawk and the hazel grouse as well as 13 other species of birds. Field work revealed its true nature while fumbling from turf to turf in the wet forest. With the help of ornithologists, a bird monitoring device was installed in the outskirts of Puhatu bog.

With the remaining enery some snowmen were built at the nature centre. By the end of the seminar we crafted our very own field guide for identifying woodpeckers. It turned out to be an exciting and enlightening seminar.