Backyard & Beyond

No, you're not in the rainforest - those are barred owls you're hearing. Common throughout the Carolinas Piedmont, barred owls (named for the stripes, or bars, on their feathers) typically hoot in a call that sounds like "Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you-all?" But this time of year, they can gather in pairs and hoot so crazily it sounds like monkeys. You can even hear them sometimes during the day. To learn more about the barred owl and hear its call, go to the Cornell Ornithology lab.

If you've found a bird that's been injured or a baby bird you believe to be orphaned or fallen from its nest, there are things you can do to help. Go to the Mecklenburg Audubon Society site to get some do's and don'ts.

UNC Charlotte Urban Institute

Earth & Energy

N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission

Latta Plantation Nature Center

Reedy Creek Nature Preserve

N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission

Backyard Chickens

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