The Baby Owls are Growing

Mama Owl sitting close to the nest

Yesterday morning, Jo and I went back to the nest to check on the owls. By now, two weeks after we had seen them for the first time, some serious birdwatchers were there all the time, with big binoculars and huge zoom lenses.

But we didn't come unprepared either. Jo had brought her binoculars and I was carrying my DSLR with the bigger zoom, hoping to get better shots of the owls than last time.

And we weren't disappointed.

The babies have grown considerably, so much that their parents cannot share the nest with them any longer. Great Horned Owls don't build their own nests, they usually occupy nests of other birds. This one had been a hawk's nest. So these nests are pretty big, but those owls are big, too. And the babies grow quickly.

One of the babies was so kind to lift its head and look down on us.

You can see how big s/he already is compared to the size of the nest.

Mama Owl perched close to the nest, supervising her young ones as every mom in the world does.

And Papa Owl was sitting in the eucalyptus tree just across the path - perhaps waiting for another crow to get and feed to his offspring (yes, they eat the crows).

I will be back again at the nest, and if I happen to snap a few decent pictures I will post them here.

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