If you get knocked in the head by a barred owl, you'd be wise to get out of their way.
The winged creatures are living in trees in parks and backyards across the Tri-Cities, and some people are sharing their distinctive calls and territorial habits on social media.
It's nesting season, according to local bird enthusiast John Reynolds, who teaches ecology at Simon Fraser University (SFU), so more people are likely to hear their, "Who cooks for you?" call.
"This barred owl is the most common owl in the Lower Mainland," said Reynolds.
They're pretty new to the province, having first been sighted in northern B.C. a few decades ago but are now spread throughout the Lower Mainland.
Runners and walkers who frequent the woods around Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Anmore and Belcarra are likely to come across them.
And one walker in Mundy Park recently had a close encounter he won't quickly forget.
'Dived bombed'
"Watch out for weirdo owl in Mundy Park near Mundy Lake/Perimeter Trail/Baseball diamond — dived bombed me 4 times last night [Sunday, Feb. 26]. Its talons got me in the head, nearly making off with my hat," a trail walker posted on Coquitlam Reddit.
His post prompted dozens of people to share their own experiences being dive-bombed by a barred owl, as well as tips and comments.
Some made fun of the poster, writing from the point of view of an owl:
"Tried to harass me and my baby owlets. I dive bombed his ass 4 times and was THIS close to making off with his hat," one comment said.
"Using both my background in ornithology and my understanding of this post, it sounds like he wants your hat. Give him the hat," wrote another.
But the original poster responded that the attack was scary at the time, which was about 8:30 p.m. that evening.
"It actually followed me down the trail for about 200 m and would dive bomb me every time I turned my back to him," the post reads.
"I had a very powerful flashlight that seemed to prevent it from getting too close — but was within ~2m before it would swoop off. It connected with me twice before I figured out the flashlight technique (full power at 1,200 lumens and shaking it quickly worked). I like owls. I've got nothing against them. But this one was a dick."
Reynolds hasn't been dive-bombed by an owl himself but knows others who have and his idea is to stay away from trails where owls are known to be during nesting season.
He says they're so quiet you won't hear them approach and you could be injured if their talons strike your head; however it's not something to worry about.
"Mundy Park is a perfect habitat for them, I would imagine there’s several pairs in the park."
Barred owls call all year round
In another recent social media post, a woman was so excited to hear the calls of barred owls near her home, she recorded a video and put it on a Coquitlam group Facebook page.
Reynolds says it's not uncommon to hear barred owl chatter, their distinctive calls can be heard all year round.
He said through predation, the barred owl has also been implicated in the sudden population crash of Western screech-owl, which is considered a protected species.
However, since the barred owls have arrived in the area, they have become another example of urban wildlife, existing close to human habitats in forested greenbelts and backyards, along with bears, coyotes, skunks and raccoons.
Barred owls are mid-sized, dark-eyed, "earless" owls with vertical brown belly stripes and grey-brown cast to the body plumage.
