Saturday, April 20, 2013

Great Horned Owl Nest

Despite it being the most exciting time of the year to see birds, I haven't gotten out to bird the neighborhood much lately. But about a month ago Libby Griffin emailed me about a Great Horned Owl nest at Chester Forest and Stillforest. For several years Red-shouldered Hawks have nested here. (Here's my blog post showing hawk nestlings in the same nest back in 2010. To see more of my records of this nest, look through these posts.) Great Horned Owls are known to take over nests built by other birds, and that's what happened this year. It's a great nest site, very high in a cedar elm tree without many direct vantage points. It's high enough that they birds don't seem disturbed by people walking by. I got this photo last week one evening after work:


Great Horned Owl on Nest

That white fluff ball just below the owls face is a nestling. Observing this nest during the coming weeks should be very fun since the nestlings will be growing rapidly and becoming more mobile.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Love the pic of Momma Owl. Just wanted you to know that your birding blog is much enjoyed by me and my family. It really helps me when I'm trying to identify a bird I've seen here. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us.

Mikael Behrens said...

You're welcome, and I'm glad you enjoy the blog! I wish I could update it more these days,

katina said...

Very cool picture. I love the Great Horned Owls - their call is just wonderful.

Mikael Behrens said...

Thanks! Me too. And I'm glad they're able to coexist with us in urban and suburban habitats like this.

Unknown said...

The three Great Horned Owl nestlings are growing beautifully. Their wing feathers are developing into quite a span. Mom/Dad are usually roosting right near them all day, though sometimes quite camouflaged. The nestlings are usually quite alert in the mornings and their heads will follow me as I walk to different places for photography. What a delight.

Steven Bach said...

I've been visiting the nest fairly frequently and taking photos of these birds. I've put up a set of photos here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/somebachs/sets/72157633365487520/detail/