Baby owlets Sarah and Percy have officially left the house! This morning Sarah climbed out of the box and up into the branches above the box. This afternoon Percy followed and left the house as well. They picked a bad time as a huge thunderstorm came in late this afternoon. The baby owls held on for dear life to their perch on the hickory branches. They survived the storm, but I bet they wish they were back in their cozy box.! They will stay in the trees all summer strenthening their flight muscles and growing their mature feathers. We will be able to hear them communicate with their parents by hisses and soft screeches. They can fly 10 to 20 feet, but that’s it for now, so ma and pa will keep them fed for quite a while. I should be able to post a photo of the babies up the tree tomorrow, so check in later for that. Thanks for watching our baby owls this year!
Wild Birds Unlimited’s Owl Box Cam Resident
Learn more about owls
Everyone at Wild Birds Unlimited is excited to announce the launch of Owl Box Cam. For a second consecutive year, we have the pleasure of watching a mama Barred Owl raise her young and share in all the milestones. Currently mama is on two eggs, which should be hatching very soon!
An 11 year project, this is the second year we have successfully attracted a Barred Owl to this nesting box, located in northwest Indianapolis, Indiana. Owl Box Cam is live streaming during daylight hours (US Eastern Time).
Enjoy many of the milestones from last year’s brood (Sarah & Percy) by watching these recorded videos. With Owl Box Cam, we hope to bring people and nature together by sharing our joy and passion for the hobby of backyard bird feeding and the natural world all around us.
The owlets Sarah and Percy are growing up and are very active. One of them actually sat in the hole looking out at the big world 2 days ago! This means they are but a few days away from leaving the box permanently. Enjoy the show while you can! http://blog.wbu.com
Last night we watched the owl box from our deck as both parents were calling to each other from different parts of the woods. We could see the top of one of the owlets head as it tried to look outside at the big world and find its parents. It won’t be long until they leave the box and finish maturing outside of the box just living in the trees. The parents will feed them all summer and we will be able to hear them calling their special hissing sound all summer.
Sarah and Percy and their parents are Barred Owls. Do you know how to tell the difference when you hear an owl hoot? Its fairly simple once you learn the basic hoot styles. To learn the melodic “who cooks for you” hoot of the Barred Owl, go to: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Barred_Owl/sounds
To learn the monotone hoot of the Great Horned Owl, go to: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Horned_Owl/sounds
Baby owls Sarah and Percy are now over 3 weeks old and are growing rapidly. Since the weather is also warmer, they are mostly left alone in the nest while their parents hunt and bring food to the nest box. They will likely be in the box for just about 7 to 10 more days and then leave the box to continue growing up all summer in our backyard.
Percy Climbing the Tree
Percy, like all owl fledglings, is quite adept at climbing trees by using his claws and still maturing wings. He can fly a few feet between branches now and often ends up nearly falling as his target ends up being small branches that can barely hold his weight. So far he has stayed in the tree and is now being fed by his parents in the trees in our backyard.
Percy Waving Goodbye
Percy says, “Adios!” Percy left the nest for the last time on Monday, May 24th. Since then he and his sister Sarah have been hanging around in the trees in the forest near the nest box. His parents still bring food to him and will do so all summer.
Mama Barred Owl with her owlets, Sarah & Percy
Ok, with wing and claw, I’ll get up this tree. By the way, all these great photos were taken by Nancy Carpenter.
