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Owls and eagles

Maybe I should rename March and make it Predator Month. The first weekend I was in Houston, MN, for the International Festival of Owls. Karla Kinstler and her team of fabulous volunteers put on a great festival as usual, although all the little kids with faces painted like owls probably tickled me the most. I met owlers from all over the region and got to connect with both old and new fans of my Birder Murder series, talking about birding experiences and mystery writing. This last weekend of the month I was in Wabasha, on my first visit to the National Eagle Center. Scott Mehus, one of the program directors there, told me they’d had about 14,000 visitors in March during their month-long celebration of the spring migration. It’s a gorgeous center right on the Mississippi, and again, I met lots of readers and birding fans, along with a wide range of folks who are fascinated with eagles. You can get fairly close and personal with several education birds there – a popular activity is getting your photo next to a live bald eagle held by a handler. Believe me, if you’ve never realized how big these birds really are, you will when you stand next to one! Now I know why mice and fish quake in their little paws and fins when they realize an eagle has an eye on them….Happy spring!

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