I’m just a lonely boy . . . .

This time of year we should be seeing baby owls hopping around the nest and clinging to close-in tree limbs.  We have been unable to locate a nest, although there were a pair of owls early in the spring.  For the past few months we’ve seen one lonely owl, and his new moniker is “Hans Solo,” the neighborhood bachelor.  For a time we assumed that sightings of just one owl meant the female was sitting on her nest, but by this time there should have been evidence of the fledglings and two busy parents frantically hunting for food on a daily basis.  Hope springs eternal, and since Hans has made the cottonwoods in the creek bottom his home since the beginning of the year, it is likely he will return with a mate next year.    We sincerely hope his courting efforts are more successful – he looks like a friendly chap!