Winter

When icicles hang by the wall,
And Dick the shepherd blows his nail,
And Tom bears logs into the hall,
And milk comes frozen home in pail,
When blood is nipp’d and ways be foul,
Then nightly sings the staring owl,
Tu-whit;
Tu-who, a merry note,
While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.

When all aloud the wind doth blow,
And coughing drowns the parson’s saw,
And birds sit brooding in the snow,
And Marion’s nose looks red and raw,
When roasted crabs hiss in the bowl,
Then nightly sings the staring owl,
Tu-whit;
Tu-who, a merry note,
While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.

William Shakespeare (from Love's Labour's Lost)

Shakespeare had it spot on. However if he heard Tu-whit and Tu-who it was probably a pair of tawny owls. We have a male tawny owl that calls from the ash near the house. He's establishing his territory ready for the breeding season. I fall asleep to the sound of his hooting. If I hear him calling when I'm out and about I respond with Keewik, the female's call.