Photo Gallery: Birds of Prey from Ravensbeard Wildlife Center

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Photo Gallery: Birds of Prey from Ravensbeard Wildlife Center
A red-tailed hawk held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Red-tailed hawks love open fields because they are home to mice, rats, rabbits, groundhogs and other small animals. You will not see these birds hunting in a forest. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
Holly Kellum
2/10/2016
Updated:
2/10/2016

WURTSBORO—A demonstration of birds of prey was just one of the attractions that drew crowds during Wurtsboro’s Winterfest on Feb. 6. Ravensbeard Wildlife Center Director Ellen Kalish brought five birds to show a packed room at the Community Church of Wurtsboro. In addition to giving interesting facts about the birds, she took the time to remind people to call an expert if they find an injured animal in the wild, to leave old, hollow trees for cavity nesting and insect-eating birds, and to put up bird boxes for Kestrels, which are declining in numbers.

 

An eastern screech owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Owls nest in cavities, which is why it is important to keep dead trees, "not only for the habitat, but because of the wood peckers and the insect-eating birds—it's a grocery store in there for everybody," Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An eastern screech owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Owls nest in cavities, which is why it is important to keep dead trees, "not only for the habitat, but because of the wood peckers and the insect-eating birds—it's a grocery store in there for everybody," Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An eastern screech owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Despite its small size, this bird is fully grown. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An eastern screech owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Despite its small size, this bird is fully grown. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An eastern screech owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. In addition to hunting land animals, these birds will also hunt in the water. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An eastern screech owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. In addition to hunting land animals, these birds will also hunt in the water. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An eastern screech owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Screech owls are good at camouflaging themselves next to trees because once they are discovered, "the forest alarm works, and that is all the crows, blue jays, chickadees, tit mice—anything that sees an owl is going to let the whole forest know, and at that point they start getting dive bombed," Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An eastern screech owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Screech owls are good at camouflaging themselves next to trees because once they are discovered, "the forest alarm works, and that is all the crows, blue jays, chickadees, tit mice—anything that sees an owl is going to let the whole forest know, and at that point they start getting dive bombed," Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barred Owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. When the center first got her, they thought she was a male and named her Hudson. Once they realized that he was actually a she, the name had already stuck and they continue to call her Hudson. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barred Owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. When the center first got her, they thought she was a male and named her Hudson. Once they realized that he was actually a she, the name had already stuck and they continue to call her Hudson. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barred Owl named Hudson held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Kalish estimates she is about 4 years old. She came to the center injured, and because they did not have another bird to help nurture her at the time, she became attached to humans and would not leave once she had been released. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barred Owl named Hudson held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Kalish estimates she is about 4 years old. She came to the center injured, and because they did not have another bird to help nurture her at the time, she became attached to humans and would not leave once she had been released. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barred Owl named Hudson held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Owls have large eyes because they hunt at night and need to be able to absorb a lot of light. They only see black and white, have a hard time recognizing each other, and so use their calls to identify each other. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barred Owl named Hudson held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Owls have large eyes because they hunt at night and need to be able to absorb a lot of light. They only see black and white, have a hard time recognizing each other, and so use their calls to identify each other. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barred owl named Hudson held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. They are most likely called Barred Owls because they have bars or stripes on their back, Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barred owl named Hudson held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. They are most likely called Barred Owls because they have bars or stripes on their back, Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A red-tailed hawk held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Red-tailed hawks love open fields because they are home to mice, rats, rabbits, groundhogs, and other small animals. You will not see these birds hunting in a forest. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A red-tailed hawk held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Red-tailed hawks love open fields because they are home to mice, rats, rabbits, groundhogs, and other small animals. You will not see these birds hunting in a forest. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A red-tailed hawk held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. The Red-tailed's underside is light and their back dark, so when they are flying they blend in with the sky, and when they are not, they blend in with the ground. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A red-tailed hawk held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. The Red-tailed's underside is light and their back dark, so when they are flying they blend in with the sky, and when they are not, they blend in with the ground. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barn owl named Nala at a presentation during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Owls eat their prey whole like a snake, starting headfirst so the fur does not go backwards, said Kalish. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barn owl named Nala at a presentation during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Owls eat their prey whole like a snake, starting headfirst so the fur does not go backwards, said Kalish. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barn owl named Nala owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Barn owls used to nest in trees but because barns have more mice, they started nesting there, said Kalish. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barn owl named Nala owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Barn owls used to nest in trees but because barns have more mice, they started nesting there, said Kalish. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barn owl named Nala held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Barn owls are in their own family; they do not belong to any other family of owls. "These are the first old-world owls that came to be," Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barn owl named Nala held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Barn owls are in their own family; they do not belong to any other family of owls. "These are the first old-world owls that came to be," Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barn owl named Nala held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Owls have silent feathers so they can sneak up on their prey without being heard. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barn owl named Nala held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Owls have silent feathers so they can sneak up on their prey without being heard. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barn owl named Nala held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. When owls are listening, they tend to move their heads. They have one ear that points forward and up, and another that points backward and down so they "literally have surround sound hearing," said Kalish. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A barn owl named Nala held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. When owls are listening, they tend to move their heads. They have one ear that points forward and up, and another that points backward and down so they "literally have surround sound hearing," said Kalish. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A great horned owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. The great horned owl's horns are not where their ears are, their ears are below their horns, which are purely decorative, Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A great horned owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. The great horned owl's horns are not where their ears are, their ears are below their horns, which are purely decorative, Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A great horned owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Great horned owls are the largest of the owls and can pick up animals as big as a small dog. Because they do not smell, their favorite prey is skunk, Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A great horned owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Great horned owls are the largest of the owls and can pick up animals as big as a small dog. Because they do not smell, their favorite prey is skunk, Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A great horned owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. The great horned owl's bodies are very light because their bones are hallow, and if weighed against their feathers, their feathers would weigh more than all their bones, Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
A great horned owl held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. The great horned owl's bodies are very light because their bones are hallow, and if weighed against their feathers, their feathers would weigh more than all their bones, Kalish said. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An American kestrel held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Kestrels hunt other birds and will sit on a telephone pole or a another high perch and wait for something to fly by. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An American kestrel held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Kestrels hunt other birds and will sit on a telephone pole or a another high perch and wait for something to fly by. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An American kestrel held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. The numbers of kestrels are declining in the U.S. so Kalish encouraged people to build boxes for them to help bring them back. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An American kestrel held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. The numbers of kestrels are declining in the U.S. so Kalish encouraged people to build boxes for them to help bring them back. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An American Kestrel held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Kestrels are the smallest of the falcon family. The males have a slate-colored ring around their head and slate coloring on their wings, while the females are completely brown. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)
An American Kestrel held by Ellen Kalish, director of Ravensbeard Wildlife Center during Winterfest in Wurtsboro on Feb. 6, 2016. Kestrels are the smallest of the falcon family. The males have a slate-colored ring around their head and slate coloring on their wings, while the females are completely brown. (Holly Kellum/Epoch Times)