Hoo Are You? Hoot, hoot. Hoot, Hoot

For the past several years, a congregation of Western Screech owls have found themselves in the tree in my neighbor's front yard.  I have seen up to five at a time hidden within the dense foliage.  Screech owls are the smallest owls in North America.  This species ranges in size from 7.5–9.8 in (19–25 cm) with a wingspan of 21.7–24.4 in (55–62 cm).

Their predator evasion techniques are interesting. During the day, these owls conceal themselves in trees, with their plumage camouflaging them well against the bark.

When confronted by a slightly larger bird of prey, they will puff up their plumage to look larger and scare the potential predator away. However, if the opponent is significantly larger, the screech owls will make themselves look skinny (like a tree branch) by elongating the body and flattening their feathers. They will also squint their eyes and even sway back and forth to imitate the natural movements of a branch.

They seem comfortable around humans.  I can get right under the tree to shoot and talking (or Michele's barking dog) doesn't seem to faze them.