Meet The Owl Man Who Prowls Forest Park By Night

ST. LOUIS, MO — Bruce Wayne watched his parents murdered and dedicated his life to fighting crime, becoming Batman. Peter Parker was bitten by a radioactive spider, giving him superpowers that he quickly learned came with great responsibility as Spider-Man. For Mark Glenshaw, it was a magical encounter one night in Forest Park that turned him into the Owl Man. He didn't get any superpowers, but it was nonetheless a life-changing experience, he said.

(Find out how you can attend the Owl Man's next public talk Thursday in Forest Park.)

"One night in late August, early September '05, I walked right by a pair of great horned owls. And I continued walking — until I heard them hoot. That caught my ear, and I went toward the sound. Over the next 20 to 30 minutes, I just had the most amazing sighting that included the owls hooting together in a duet, the owls flying, which is completely gorgeous. And then one of them — for the cherry on top — chased a great blue heron. The heron was terrified, but I was hooked."

Visit Glenshaw's YouTube channel:

Already an amateur naturalist, Glenshaw started researching great horned owls, reading anything he could get his hands on at the local library. And he started going out, night after night, in search of the elusive birds. As he learned about the owls and his sightings became more regular, he also began giving talks and leading owl-spotting tours — he calls them owl prowls. Last year, he spent more than 300 evenings in Forest Park, led 90 owl prowls, and gave 55 talks across Missouri and Illinois.

"There's just something about owls," he said. "Across human history and cultures, people respond to owls very strongly. They kind of look like us. They have binocular vision, eyes on the front of their faces. So, they're this odd mirror that gets odder because they're active at night. Some of them make very odd, strange and scary calls. So, we recognize them, but they're very different, and we have to respond to that."

Some of the earliest known cave paintings in Chauvet, France, depict owls, Glenshaw said, indicating that humans' fascination with the creatures goes back a long way.

Since 2005, he has concentrated on a single pair of great horned owls that live in Forest Park, but he says there is at least one other pair that lives in the park, as well as multiple pairs of barred owls.

He named his owls Charles and Sarah — Charles because it sounded regal and Sarah after a friend. When Sarah (the owl, not the human) died in 2015, likely from natural causes, Charles found a new mate — Olivia — who was soon chased away by a larger, more aggressive female — Samantha — who Glenshaw named after the character from Sex in the City.

Charles and Samantha are still together, and Glenshaw studies them just about every night.

Over the years, he's seen 23 owlets born — usually two to three per year, but some years none at all. It can take six to eight months, he said, for the babies to mature to the point where their parents chase them away from the nest — scientists call it dispersal — and the fledgling owls fly off in search of their own territories.

(For more stories like this, subscribe to Patch for daily newsletters and breaking news alerts. You can also download the free Patch app for iPhone and Android.)

Before becoming the Owl Man, Glenshaw studied history and communications at Washington University and now works as circulation manager at Fontbonne University's Taylor Library. He's been interested in animals and science all his life, he said, and in addition to working in a library, libraries seem to be a refuge — a place he can really dig into subjects that captivate him.

Glenshaw is an advocate of citizen science, which — according to the Audubon Society — can provide researchers with important information about the health of bird habitats, biodiversity, and climate change. Getting involved in citizen science projects also raises awareness of conservation issues and helps protect owls and other wildlife.

"Anyone can be a scientist," Glenshaw said. "Whether they do it professionally, whether or not they've studied it in school. If you have done those things, it's great, but if you haven't, you can still do it too."

He's seen Forest Park change a lot over the years, mostly for the better. Intensive efforts to reforest portions of the almost 1300-acre park and reconstruct natural habitats have made it an attractive place for owls, who need two basic things, Glenshaw said: trees to roost and open fields to hunt. The owls' prey may include everything from squirrels and rabbits to insects and other birds — robins and even that great blue heron Glenshaw saw Charles chasing that first night in 2005.

"A big part of my outreach work is helping to fund those efforts," Glenshaw said. "When people come on owl prowls, there's no requirement or guilt trip, but I ask that people donate to Forest Park Forever. And people have been very generous. We have to keep this going for our grandkids, their grandkids and everyone else."

According to the Owl Man, one of the biggest ways people can help protect owls in their everyday lives is by not using rodent poison.

"If people have a rodent problem, there are a number of solutions, but rodenticide is a horrible one," Glenshaw explained. "You poison a rodent, the rodent's body gets thrown away, then an owl, hawk or snake finds it and says, ooh easy pickins', eats that poisoned rodent and dies a slow, horrible death."

The more people learn about owls, Glenshaw hopes, the more they will want to protect them and their habitats.

Do you want to find owls in your own neighborhood? The Owl Man has some tips.

Look up: Owls spend almost all of their time perched in tall trees or flying in the air. If you're going to spot one, get used to craning your neck.

Look down, for their droppings — so thick and white they're often called whitewash — or owl pellets. Those are thick masses of hair and bone — things owls can't digest — about the size of a nut. You may have dissected an owl pellet in middle or high school. They're often important clues about an owl's diet.

Listen: An owl's hoot is very distinctive, but you may also hear warning calls from squirrels or other birds that can alert you to the presence of a predator like an owl.

And, finally, talk to your neighbors. Ask if they've seen owls nearby. Document the dates and times you see them so that you can share your own stories. And hit the books to learn all you can. The more you know, the more likely you are to know where to look.

"They're hard to find, but once you start looking, you realize they're all over the place," Glenshaw said.

Of course, you could always just call the expert. In addition to his public talks and tours, Glenshaw is happy to lead private owl prowls. His next public talk, hosted by Forest Park Forever, is Thursday at 5 p.m. at the Dennis & Judith Jones Visitor and Education Center on Grand Drive.

Find more info here.

Lede Photos by Mark Glenshaw (used with permission)