ML615020701

Observation details

*Flagged, but known location. We heard a spontaneous tooting about a minute after getting out of the car, although somewhat distant to the south. We drove down the road a few hundred feet to the south pulloff. After a few toots of whistled impression, a single Saw-whet joined in, very close, seemingly almost above us in the tall spruces. It moved back and forth between sides of the road, sometimes above us in the trees and other times appearing to be low to the ground, below the grade of the road, in the reeds and bushes of the inlet marsh to the west (interesting...). A few seconds after the close bird stopped calling, a very distant bird to the north started tooting, likely back near the northern parking area. Confirmed two at this point - awesome. We had the idea to try to get one of the Saw-whets for Livingston County (a county need), given that the closer one was already further south than I believe most folks have had them over the past few weeks. We drove a few hundred feet further south and whistled. The bird followed. All of the sudden, we were having difficulty determining if there were one or two close birds given that the orientation of the tooting constantly shifted between both sides of the road and we never saw motion overhead, something that would have been visible on this moonlit night. The far bird occasionally responded as well, still well to the north. Submitting a dummy eBird checklist, we were still in Ontario County. Confused where the county line actually was, and with the habitat changing to more deciduous further south, we decided to call off the schnanigans with these little guys for their wellbeing. Of note, we tried the Powell Road spot in Livingston County afterward, but the wind started to pick up. I thought I heard three toots in response to my whistling, but not loud enough to confidently submit a report. Audio to be attached for the Ontario County birds. Truly a special moment that gave us chills and made us forget about the cold!