Peenie Wallie: Great-horned Owlets

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May 6, 2010

Great-horned Owlets - Day 50

Above: In this photo, both owlets have left the nest, which is in a sad state of disrepair at this point. The owls will obviously not be able to reuse the nest next year. Both owlets are now in the same tree that holds the nest where they hatched. One owlet left the tree for a day or so, and was perched in an adjacent tree about 50 yards away, but somehow he's managed to return to the tree from whence he came. I'm not clear if he flew, walked, or climbed to get to back his tree of origin, but they look to me like they could fly away any day now.

My best estimate as to when the owlets were born is March 14-17, meaning that in this photo taken May 6th, the owlets would be approximately 50-53 days old.

Update: According to this site: "Young owls move out of nest onto nearby branches at 6-7 weeks of age. Fully fledge at 10-11 weeks. Fledged owls remain with parents throughout most of summer, who continue to bring them occasional food items. May be seen begging for food into October, 4-5 mo after leaving nest."

So, according to this, the owls are right on track. They moved out of the nest and into nearby branches at 6-7 weeks old, so they'll probably still be around for another 3 - 4 weeks. Cool.

Categories: Photos, Birds, Owls

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