We continue down the path, round the curve and end up passing by a small lake. The reason these owls have the ability to fly silently is the unique noise-cutting edge on their flight feathers. The easily recognizable “Who Cooks for You” call can be heard on a quiet night. This beautifully plumed nocturnal bird has some wonderful adaptations. As the name suggests, this owl’s plumage is striped with a barred pattern. It is one of the larger owl species of North Carolina and has a diet of small rodents, birds, snakes, and insects. The barred owl uses its superior night-vision and acute hearing abilities to pinpoint its targeted prey. Then, with swiftness and ease, the owl quietly swoops down and uses its powerful talons to catch its prey. These wonderful night creatures are fun to watch dart and dash in the moon light or a street light and are wonderful parts of a healthy ecosystem.īut wait! What is that sound off in the distance? “Who cooks for you!” “Who cooks for you!”? These phenomenal creatures are the only true flying mammals, since flying squirrels and sugar gliders glide (“catch some air”) rather than fly. The species of bats that we have in North Carolina are insectivores, which means their diet consists of insects. It is estimated that one little brown bat can eat the equivalent of 10,000 mosquitoes a night! Wow! Thank you BATS! These tremendous helpers use echolocation to track down and swoop up their prey, including moths, mosquitoes and other flying insects. While bats are vectors for rabies- which means they can catch, become infected, be affected by the rabies virus, and pass the virus. Maybe you can still hear a high-pitched noise accompanying these quick and nimble night flyers. They eat leaves from the tops of bushes and trees as well as sometimes consuming other dead insects.Īs we continue our hike and meander down the road, with the night slowly encompassing us into a cool embrace, we see a quick fluttering under the moonlight or street lamps. Katydids are bright green insects that look like a leaf (even down to the veins on a leaf) with large back jumping legs. That distinctive call is made by the Katydids. Within the symphony of crickets, we can hear an intermittent and distinctive “Katie-did, Katie-didn’t” during summer nights into late Autumn. What do you hear? It is a surround-sound sing-a-long performed by insects. But which ones? The first things we recognize during a warm summer night are the crickets. For this moment, close your eyes and imagine a warm summer night outside.

Some are like a melody, Songs drifting on the wind seemingly from SchenectadyĪnd with that, we begin our hike.

When you take a little wander, you might begin to wonder In this Ask a Ranger article, we provide you a photo and information for each animal we discuss. Night sounds: A hikers and campers guide to nature's nightlife Read the article below to learn more about the animals that you heard on the podcast. Weymouth Woods Sandhills Nature PreserveĬlick the player above to listen to the episode.Occoneechee Mountain State Natural Area.

Animals that hiss