Judy,
Presumably it is the female who sits in the box as she does the majority of care for young incubation, brooding, feeding, etc. In direct comparison the female bird will be notably larger than the male so you should be able to confirm near dusk when the male brings prey in to the female who will then feed the chicks (as the young get larger both will feed and the "kids" will be at the entrance hole waiting.
Last year I had a pair of gray birds, and until 2 weeks ago had a Flying Squirrel in my box, but now have a pair of owls with the same mix as you male gray, female red. If your bird is in the box mouth throughout the day, then your box already has decent-sized chicks. I'm a good month behind but that gives us at least two potential broods with the same color morphs, it will be interesting to compare results.
There is an older screech owl monograph put out some years ago that shows that while "red" birds are EXTREMELY rare in the northern areas, they become far more common in the southern US. I'll see if I can find it to offer a better reference. One other note though, before moving to FL, I noted only very gray (lead colored basally) or VERY red (brighter than brick colored) birds. However, here in the deep south I see a lot of birds I consider intermediate and note that Sibley depicts a "brown" adult in his field guide to birds. In fairness, mine is more of a brownish red than a bright brick red bird. How about yours? RED-red or brownish?
Best,
Jeff Bouton
Port Charlotte, FL
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Marianne Korosy <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
Judy, et al.
I don't know much about genetics but I think the gray morph is dominant. Rich and Ann Paul had a pair of Screech Owls nesting in their yard a few years ago -- I believe it was the female that was rufous, the male gray. They had 5 offspring that included both color morphs but the majority were gray in that brood. If I remember correctly it was 4 out of 5 that were gray.
I hope you'll "report" back to the list on the color morph distribution of the brood in your yard!
Marianne Korosy
Okeechobee and Palm Harbor, FL
>>> Judy Fisher 5/2/2008 10:14 PM >>>
The Screech-Owl that spends the day in my nesting box is reddish. Its
presumed mate that roosts close by in thicker clumps of the same oak the box
is attached to, is gray. Does anyone know the genetics of the Florida
subspecies to be able to tell me what coloration I can expect in the chicks?
Judy
Judy Fisher
Seminole, Fl
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