Two Eastern Screech Owl Chicks Peering Out from Old Red-cockaded Woodpecker Cavity at Dusk in Croatan National Forest - Stockfoto

Two Eastern Screech Owl (Megascops asio) chicks peer out from their nesting cavity, originally excavated by an endangered Red-cockaded Woodpecker (Leuconotopicus borealis), in a longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) at dusk in Croatan National Forest, North Carolina. As twilight settles over the forest, these young owls begin to observe the world beyond their nest, waiting for the return of a parent with food. The longleaf pine forest, a fire-adapted ecosystem, supports an extraordinary range of species, with cavity creation by woodpeckers helping to sustain biodiversity from birds and bats to reptiles and insects. Preserving this ecosystem is vital not only for Eastern Screech Owls but for the overall health of one of the most endangered forest types in North America.