“Who cooks for you, who cooks for y’ahhwwwwl?”

That’s the call of the barred owls in Pennsylvania. With brown and cream-colored feathers, barring on the chests and soulful brown eyes, they are handsome birds.

Depending on the sex, body lengths are between 16 to 25 inches, wingspans are between 38 to 49 inches and weights are between 1 to 3 pounds. Female about 30% larger and heavier than the male.

I always explain this to children by asking them who they would rather be protected by; a man 6 feet tall with muscles or their younger brother or sister? They “get” it. It makes sense to have the larger of the two for protection, and it is the same for the owl pair.

Most people are familiar with diurnal animals that are most active during the daytime hours and nocturnal animals that are most active during the nighttime hours.

Barred owls are known as crepuscular animals. What this means is they are most active dawn to dusk.

These owls prey upon a variety of animals such as small mammals, rodents, opossums, rabbits, smaller birds as well as smaller owls, amphibians, reptiles, fish and invertebrates.

They are known to also hunt for crayfish and fish. Barred owls have been seen wading in shallow waters in pursuit of aquatic prey.

One report noted a barred owl perched on a branch extending out over a shallow stream. The owl dropped straight in the water to catch fish.

Barred owls live year-round in mixed forests in swamps and wetlands. These forests of deciduous and coniferous trees tend to support a higher diversity of prey which is needed for the offspring to grow strong and to grow quickly.

Sometime in January the mating ritual will begin with the pair bobbing and bowing their heads as they sit perched close to each other calling in a duet and they mate for life.

They use the same nest year after year because typically they do not migrate. This allows them to hold onto their territory year-round. They have also been known to accept man-made nest boxes. They do very little “home improvement” to the nest, unlike eagles that remodel every year, making changes by adding branches. At best, the female may add feathers or lichen, but that is the extent of nesting improvements.

The female will sit on a clutch of 2-3 eggs for about 33 days as the sole incubator of the eggs. She will guard the nest and aggressively defend the young and territory from great horned owls, northern goshawks, raccoons, and weasels.

Great horned owls will also prey upon the adults. The young will leave the nest at about four to five weeks but will remain close by, perching on branches until they are able to fly at around 10 weeks. They may stay with their parents up to four months. By early fall the young will leave to be on their own.

Barred owls’ numbers increased 1.5% per year between 1966 and 2014, according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey.

Partners in Flight estimates their global breeding population at 3 million, with 90% in the U.S., 7% in Canada, and 3% in Mexico. They have made their way outside of their eastern United States range into the northwestern parts.

In Oregon and Washington, they have become invasive. Barred owls have moved into the Spotted owl’s territory and because they are more aggressive have caused Spotted numbers to decline.

So, the next time you hear “Who cooks for you, who cooks for y’ahhwwwwl?” be sure to look up because it just might be a Barred owl.

Jeannie Carl is a naturalist at the Carbon County Environmental Education Center in Summit Hill. The center rehabilitates injured animals and educates the public on a variety of wildlife found in the area. For information on the Carbon County Environmental Center, visit www.carboneec.org.