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Got a question? Ever wondered about something related to geography? Then ask away here. Every two weeks, Joe Blanton, director of our Research Correspondence division, will post answers to three of the most interesting questions received via e-mail. Unfortunately time constraints preclude individual e-mail responses.
Giving a hoot...
My parents have a pair of owls on their farm. We assume that they are barn owls. We would like to know about their diet and what we can feed them, and how, since they obviously wont visit our bird feeder.
I spoke with Rob Dyke and Sherry Fisher of Scales & Tales, an educational program run by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, about your question. They said that the owls presence on your farm means they have probably found food there. Owls are birds of prey and are very capable of finding food for themselves. They eat mice and wood rats primarily. Owls actually see and hear much better than humans, which enables them to locate prey in dim light or even total darkness.
It should be fairly easy to tell if your owls are barn owls. Barn owls are long-legged, light-colored birds with white, heart-shaped faces. They are 15-20 inches (381-508 millimeters) in length and have wingspans of around 44 inches (1,118 millimeters). You can see a picture at the Noahs Ark Organic Farmer site, which also provides instructions on building owl nests.
Barn owls range over most of the world with related species in South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia. In the Northern Hemisphere they usually nest in March, April or May. So enjoy them while they grace your farm.
Hi! I wonder if you could tell me which three articles over the years have generated the most response mail from subscribers. I dont need to know the dates of the articles, just the subject matter. Thanks.
In the past 20 years or so, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC articles on Mount St. Helens, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and the sense of smell have brought in the most mail.
While visiting Nags Head, North Carolina, I saw a map of shipwrecks along the Outer Banks published by National Geographic around 1970-72. My son goes on dives around these shipwrecks. I am interested in obtaining one, possibly two, copies of that map. Is this possible? Any help you could give me would be greatly appreciated.
The map, Ghost Fleet of the Outer Banks, accompanied the September 1969 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC article Lonely Cape Hatteras, Besieged by the Sea. The map is not available separately, but a copy of the September 1969 issue is available for U.S.$15.00. You can order it online from the NGS Store or by calling 800 NGS LINE (800 647 5463) from the U.S. or Canada. Or you may write:
National Geographic Society
1145 17th Street N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20036
U.S.A.
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