The baby owls are getting big !

Thanks garden mermaid. This is the third year I've seen the owls have babies and never seen one before walking around for hours in the daytime. They will be back again next year and I will be in contact with the wildlife refuge before then so I can call someone who knows about them if I need to know anything.

That's a great idea to call the refuge for pointers. Let them know you're an experienced great horned owl auntie/nanny and that mom and dad owl trust you to entertain the kids.

Yes I agree with garden mermaid. Betterbloom did what she thought was in the best interest of the owl.

i would have never left that owl there either, overnight....especially after watching for a long period. Its a win-win as I see it. Betterbloom and the neighbors can feel good knowing that the owl didnt get eaten, and the owl will be raised to fly free. Not like it went to the pound. For those of us that are frequent receipients of all different kinds of birds and small animals at our door on a regualr basis...dead or dying with no hope of revival and you have to sit their and watch and listen or kill it....i thank heavens for the animal rescue people, I have taken them many things. One thing is for sure...I have totally enjoyed those owl pictures, cant believe that the one by the tree is the same baby. hope to see them again next year.

Mom Owl has been nesting in the same tree for the last 8 years that we know of. She will be back next year and we'll be able to see more of her and her babies. Yes gardenglory, amazing how much bigger they really are when standing up. That baby was about the size of a small duck.

Bless you, Betterbloom. I know you agonized over a decision and did what you thought best for your baby. I sure hope all of them are OK.

Judy, yes, we all did. These little owls are part of this park every year. We once caught kids throwing rocks at them. This whole park was in an uproar for days over that. We would never knowingly harm any thing here. Even the rattlers are captured and released.

Snatching a fledgling bird away from its parents care is a terrible thing to do and should never be allowed! It was only being "protected" from a possible threat. But snatching it away from the parents care was a certain disaster. The adult owls were capable of protecting their fledgling offspring. Now, it has little if any change of learning to hunt and feed its self. Necessary skills to survive in the wild.

The feel good action is THE WRONG THING TO DO!!!!

DO NOT DISTURB FLEDGLING BIRDS! EVER!

Gary Rasmussen

Ok grasmussen, you made your point, twice, and you don't have to yell ! Let's not have an argument over this..it's already done and hopefully I never have to go thru this again.

Got it, Gary.

Betterbloom your unselfish caring and sharing has given many of us the opportunity to watch an amazing event, which we never would have the privledge to see, if it were not for you. I truly thank you, and look forward to next year. :)

daiseycat, Thank you for enjoying all of these pics. Yes, next year will be a another year...

Look forward to next year's owlets!

betterbloom I have really enjoyed this saga of the baby owlets. The pictures havve been wonderful. I feel like I have gotten to know these birds! Is there any sign of the other babies around? How nice it is that you live so near a park! Thanks for sharing all this with us.

Lilyfantn: I don't live near a park, I live in it. Three are six of us that live here full time and help maintain the park. Every year we look forward to watching owls grow up here. We also get a lot of professional bird watchers and photographers come in just to visit them also. This is the first year I've had a digital camera so I was able to get good pics. I'm already looking forward to next year. The other two babies should be around but I haven't seen them for awhile.

Sandy, what great photo's..how lucky you are..know we have white owls but never been that close to be able to photograph them...thanks for sharing

Betty, I'm not familiar with the white owls, but aren't they bigger than the Great Horned ?

Thanks Resin, I knew I'd heard or read something about them and thought they were bigger. Is there an owl that is bigger than the great horned ?

Ooops! Looks like I got it wrong - on checking up, a couple of books give Snowy Owl as slightly larger than GHO.

The largest owls are Eurasian Eagle Owl (Europe, Asia) and Blakiston's Fish Owl (eastern Asia).

Length and weight (m=male, f=female), from Handbook of the Birds of the World:
Great Horned Owl - length m 51cm, f 60cm; weight m 680-1450g, f 1000-2500g
Snowy Owl - length m 55-64cm, f 60-70cm; weight m 700-2500g, f 780-2950g
Eurasian Eagle Owl - length 60-75cm; weight m 1500-2800g, f 1750-4200g
Blakiston's Fish Owl - length 60-72cm; weight not available

Resin

Resin, after reading your posting, was curious where the Great Gray Owl would stand in the size ranking. This was partly because I learned the location of a nesting pair just yesterday. I would love to photograph them, but it is 173 miles away, in a private camp ground.

My reference list them as follows:

Great Horned Owl 22 in. = 56 cm.
Snowy Owl 24 in. = 61 cm.
Great Gray Owl 29 in. = 74 cm.

My reference does not list the Eurasian Eagle Owl or the Blakiston's Fish Owl, only North American species. The Great Gray Owl is also in the extra large category.

Hi Gras, GGO is long, but slender, thin-bodied (the bulky appearance is all just fluffy feathers); from the same source as above:

Great Grey Owl - length 59-69cm; weight m 800-1175g, f 925-1700g

So slightly shorter than Eurasian Eagle Owl, but less than half the weight.

Looks like your ref uses a different method of measuring length (maybe stretched, rather than relaxed, length). Good luck on the camping trip . . . !

Resin

Thanks for the additional info Resin. As for the "just fluffy feathers", that's the way I think of owls in general.