“They make it their profession to blend in,” says Beth Mendelsohn.

She’s talking about long-eared owls – and specifically, the male long-eared owl who is peering down from the Russian-olive behind us. His posture is upright, his earlike feather tufts partially raised. Beth is a research biologist with the Owl Research Institute (ORI), a nonprofit based in Charlo, Montana. This morning we’re out with her and Denver Holt, ORI’s founder. And as you might suspect, given the name of this nonprofit, we’re researching owls.