Public gets rare chance to watch barn owls hatch

Barn Owlet Watch 2026” is underway for a nest box with six barn owl eggs, and the public has 24-hour access to the  N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission’s live cam with audio to watch all the action in real time. The expected “hatch” date is between April 9 and 15. 

Word from the Smokies: Peregrine falcons soar from brink of extinction

With striking white-and-gray plumage, yellow beaks and talons and powerfully compact bodies, peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus) are beautiful birds in any posture. But they’re downright magical in the air — aerial acrobats capable of reaching 200 mph as they dive down onto their prey. For Johnson City, Tennessee, ornithologist Rick Knight, such sightings are especially rich in meaning. 

Up Moses Creek: ‘When, Wren?’

Finally, we can go out the back door again. For a month we made a front door detour around an unplanned construction project on the back porch. 

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