We learned they were eastern screech owls because of the owl website that had sound files of their calls. These screech owls have a rippling sort of hoot that is kind of shivery. I hear them even in the daytime out at the farm where I ride.
The parent owl showed up as the sun started to go down. She or he flies back and forth between the trees on the edge of the yard to the owl house on the shed roof. Ben said that this morning she had a dove in her talons. Babies are eating good then.
The bottom photo is of the biggest baby peeking out. They must see the camera lens and the binoculars as owl eyes looking back at them.
2 Comments
jne4 · May 1, 2010 at 7:57 am
Did you put a roof on their home when you saw them nesting? How high up are they? I have owl envy.
Patrice Sarath · May 1, 2010 at 9:50 am
What had happened is that we had to have the tree taken out because it was dead and sat too close to the house for safety. Ben took the babies out of the nest for safekeeping (see previous blog entry). The tree company cut off the section of trunk where the nest was and then they propped the section up on top of the shed overhang.
Ben put a roof over it then. They are about 7 or 8 feet up now. We have a viewing ladder that lets us use the binoculars to see in.