Category: Animals

We left some food on the ledge last night and one of the owlets came back and took it, as you can see. Not bad flying but still a little unsure of itself. But if you listen carefully (and ignore the background thumping noise) you can hear another owl in the background hissing. We think the other owlet is back too!

One of the owlets is alive! It appeared back in the nest box last night, hungry and looking for food but otherwise appearing quite healthy and clearly able to fly. It didn’t stay long and annoyingly we hadn’t left any food (having more or less given up on them).

Back from the dead.

We’re not sure whether it is the male or female, and we don’t know what has happened to the other one. We’ll put some food back in the nest box tonight in case either come back.

We took the opportunity of the empty nest box to do some work on it, move the camera and install a second one on a boom outside looking directly at the nest box. We also left some food on the ledge in case one of the owlets did come back. Then this happened.

A buzzard came and in an instant had made off with the field vole. Buzzards are known to take birds, particularly fledglings and though we will never know for sure this could explain the sudden disappearance of the two owlets.

Here’s the video in slow motion.

Day 65. After the first owlet disappeared yesterday, the second left the nest box last night, despite the wet weather, and hasn’t returned since. No signs of either owlet (and we have searched and searched). There is a slim chance they have both fledged and are roosting in another tree somewhere nearby, but the weather has been dreadful (owls can’t fly in the rain) and they have only just started to learn to fly.

Fingers crossed. We will keep the nest box ready for them (and have adjusted the cameras so we will spot them if they do appear), but there is a good chance we won’t see them again.

Day 64. It looks like we’ve lost one of the owlets. Looking more closely at the video clips from yesterday one of them didn’t come back into the nest box in the early hours of the morning, and hasn’t been seen since. No sign either up in the tree or one the ground (and we have searched and searched), not even a feather.

It’s likely it fell out of the tree, and not being able to fly properly yet would have been easy prey for a passing predator.

Such is nature. Going to make sure the remaining hootlet gets all it needs over the next few days.

The last sighting of the two owlets together

Day 63. The two owlets have spent the night outside, firstly watching the bats (perhaps for inspiration) and then climbing all over the oak tree, finally returning to the safety of the nest box at dawn. Tomorrow night might be the night for their first flight!

Here are a few video clips from the night of adventure

Day 62. The two owlets have both ventured out onto the ledge for the first time, despite the wind trying to blow them off.

One of the adults even made an appearance with a fat ? (mouse, vole or mole, we can’t quite make it out) for one of the owlets.

Day 61. The owlets don’t spend all day resting: there’s plenty of time for a bit of mutual preening and stretching of wings.

Day 61. One of the owlets having a good look around before settling down for a day of resting. They’re not rushing to learn to fly so we are going to carefully cut down on the feeding to encourage them to come out more.

Male or female hootlet? We’re not sure.

Day 59. Just a few hours later and the owlet takes its first tentative step out on the ledge. She doesn’t go any further though: not surprising as she’s come out of the safety of the small world inside the nest box to find herself twelve feet up a tree and no parent to guide her.