Thursday
May122011
Following Owls
May 12, 2011 * * * * * Posted by: Carola 
For more than six weeks I have been following a family of Great Horned Owls (Bubo virginianus). I discovered them by accident – while my friend and I were walking around the lake one morning, we saw a crowd of people with binoculars and cameras looking up an eucalyptus tree. After inquiring what they were watching, we saw it with our very own eyes: a huge nest in a fork in the upper part of the tree. We could barely make out the pointed ears of Mama Owl and did not see the owlets. There were two of them, we were told.
It took another two weeks until we finally saw the owlets. By then, the babies had grown so much that Mom couldn’t stay in the nest anymore. It was a big nest, but already too small for the owl family. Owls are renters, they do not build their own nests. They “occupy” ready made nests – nature’s way of foreclosure. This one was a hawk’s nest. We saw the owlets peeking out of the nest, curiously looking at the crowd beneath them. Later they ventured out and hopped onto the nearest branch, spreading their wings and, yes, pooping down on the crowd.
From then on I visited the owls almost every day. I enjoyed being a witness to the upbringing of these birds. Tom, the park volunteer who observed the owls every day, shared his incredible knowledge about them. During those six weeks I learned so much about owls that I became an “owl dictionary”. I was able to tell other people about these nocturnal predators when Tom wasn’t around. Connecting with people, sharing our love for nature and hoping that the owls would survive was a wonderful side effect of this unique experience.
And then an entire drama unfolded. One morning when I reached the site one owlet was sitting on the ground under a nearby redwood tree. Less than half an hour before it had fallen out of the nest during a fight with its sibling. Good thing that Tom had already been there and called the ranger. People diverted bikers and dog walkers so that the owlet could be safe. Neither Mama Owl nor Dad Owl who was perching on a nearby eucalyptus tree in his usual spot came to their child’s rescue (and honestly, what could they have done?). The ranger finally arrived – he was one of the very experienced rangers whom I had known for almost ten years. Very gently he put the frightened little owlet who seemed to be uninjured into a box and delivered him to the local Bird Rescue Center. We are getting regular updates, the little owl is doing fine. There are good chances that he can be released into the wild later this year.
His sibling by now has left the nest and climbs, hops and jumps higher and higher up the tree, Mama Owl always nearby, keeping an eye on him. One evening I saw Dad Owl taking off for the hunt – they eat a lot of crows but also little animals like squirrels and skunks, even snakes. A few more weeks and the fledgling will fly – his wings that he spreads constantly are already pretty big. He is slowly loosing his fluff and fuzziness. Soon he will be gone, discovering his world.
Latest update: I just came back from an evening at the lake. The "fallen" owlet has been released last night and was sitting in one of the trees on a lower branch. He looked good and we hope that Mama Owl will start to feed him again.
Reader Comments (19)
How rewarding it is to be able to watch their growth and progress on a daily basis - and how wonderful to hear the update about the release of the fallen one. Hopefully they will both grow up to raise families of their own. We have burrowing oils here and a pair built their nest on the side of the road a couple of years ago. I kept an eye out and one day two little heads popped up out of the hole while mom and dad sat by and screeched at me to go away. I did, but they were so cute!
here in Holland we have a site that shows a few webcams placed on breading birds, lovely to see that process. See if you can visit it sometimes:
http://www.beleefdelente.nl/
WOW! What an amazing find!! Nature and the bird-world especially is so fascinating. I've been following a family of newborn (just on Monday)Canada Geese. There were 6 goslings to begin..now only 4 left. It's great that the ranger was able to save the owl's life!!
Wonderful image!!!
I've been following this at your blog, Carola, and have watched with my eyes wide open (mouth, too). You are so lucky to have had this bird-watching experience...something most of us will never see. I have heard that some mama birds will not take care of their baby if it has been touched by a human. I sure hope this owl mama is different, thankful that someone took care of her young for her. How fun to follow this through your lens and words!
Fascinating! I am in awe of the animal kingdom and the manner in which they live. Loved the interesting narration that accompanied your very nice image.
Hey Carola, good to have this update on the family ... I've been enjoying it so much over at your place, too. Wonderful images that you've posted all along.
We have a family of Barred Owls in our back yard. It's been such an amazing experience to see these guys grow every day. Here is my blog post on the babies http://underacoppersky.typepad.com/under-a-copper-sky/2011/05/beautiful-babies.html and I actually got to see one leaving the nest to become a "brancher" http://underacoppersky.typepad.com/under-a-copper-sky/2011/05/flight-lessons.html. Just LOVE them. Owls are so special and I'm glad the little baby Horned Owl is okay.
thank you for this terrific post about a bird that has personal resonance for me! my mother collected owls, and whenever i see one, i think she has returned to earth to check in with me! i now see that she's sent some of her friends your way!
Fascinating !! thanks for sharing. now I am going over to your blog, to read and view some more about it.
I've been following your owls on your blog and it's been like watching an episode of National Geographics! So glad to know that baby owl is alright.
I love this post. Mother nature continues to amaze me and I love it when we get to witness such remarkable things.
So lucky to watch these guys. I have been watching the Decorah Iowa Eagles, a webcam, that is on 24/7. Watched the little eaglets hatch! Wonderful!
What a wonderful opportunity to watch a family of such gorgeous birds - and so lovely to hear the happy ending!
a great post.... I'm glad the little owlet that fell is safe......
So that's why the crows hate the owls so much and shriek at them incessantly. I am trying to figure out where my two adult owls have gone. They disappeared in April. I'm hoping they are just busy with babies and returning soon. Great photo and post.
so incredible, i love that you have been able to follow them as they have grown. so glad to hear that the little fallen owl has made it back home to roost!
What a wonderful story! I've been enjoying peeking into the eagle's nest in Iowa and the oehoe-nest in Holland. That can count as a morning ritual ;-)
so relieved that the baby owl was saved. sadly animal good luck stories aren't commen here, so yours is lovely to read :) i rescued an owl once, it had flown into a fence and was stuck by its claws (out of fright i think) and a dog almost had it, was jumping and trying to grab it in its jaws. i chased the dog off and very carefully unpeeled the owls claws off the fence. once free it sunk them very deep into my hand and i couldn't get it off me...very painful!!!
Glad to hear that the little owlet is safe.