Ernie
found an easier way to get to the door today and June did not approve.
While she was in the nest preening Abigail, he easily reached the door by
pushing off on June and the crowd with his wings. This propelled him to
the doorway and he appeared to be going further until June intervened. She
carefully pushed her head over his left wing, stuck her head in the
doorway next to his (picture) and then gently nudged him to his right
until he fell back into the nest. An owlet that is not ready to climb the
ladder without assistance would not be able to climb a tree to get to a
safe perch outside. The coyotes that can be heard howling in the night
would make short work of an owlet that remained on the ground for long.
Emmett
and Abigail made numerous attempts to get to the door, but always fell
back after a few seconds. They both succeeded in hooking their beaks over
the bottom of the doorway, but have not yet mastered the footwork needed
to push themselves up with the owlet steps. They are both old enough to
make the climb, but are just too well fed to make the effort. When June
dangled a mouse in front of them today, it took her quite a while to find
a taker. She and Ward will probably have to cut back on the food a bit in
the next few days to coax them out. There is, however, no sign of a letup
tonight with eight deliveries in the first three hours after sunset.