Ephemeral phantoms

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Northern saw-whet owls 
Ephemeral phantoms of the high mountains

Sometimes, just knowing they are there is enough.

Yes. Northern saw-whet owls live and nest on the top of Old Smoky, but they are secretive and I had never been up there at the right season, or right time of the day or in the right conditions to hear one. So for that matter, they might as well nest on the moon.

Dr. Fred Alsop knows the issues. He spent weeks on the Appalachian Trail during grad school at the University of Tennessee under the tutelage of faculty advisor Dr. Jim Tanner.

“The peak of singing activity is from the first week of April through the third week of May,” Alsop writes in his small red treasure, “Birds of the Smokies.”

“Weather conditions seem to be a major factor influencing singing, with most vocalizations coming on clear nights with little or no wind. Rain, fog, low clouds, and other inclement conditions make the chances of hearing this owl almost zero.”

If you know the higher elevations of the Smokies, you know that inclement conditions are a daily occurrence; things change hourly, clouds move in, clouds move out. Perfect conditions are never a guarantee. Karen Webster had worked for a year at LeConte Lodge in...

For the rest of the article I penned, check out the May/June issue of The Tennessee Conservationist magazine.

As always thank you Louise Zepp, editor.

Look for it at a Tennessee State Park near you!

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