May Owllog

May Owllog (continues from April)

5-3-98: Today promises to be another one of those very long days. Ward made no food deliveries last night and June has nothing to feed the owlets. She is now whining and looking up at the sky as the owlets struggle to get out from under her wings. She keeps the owlets warm by cupping them in her wings and pressing them to her body. They still spend about ninety percent of their time in this state, but increasingly scratch and claw to escape as they get older. (8:45am) Note: a new color photograph has been added to the April 17^th link on the April Activities Calendar.

5-4-98: Just as the whining and wheezing were growing unbearable yesterday, Ward came through with two highly unusual daylight deliveries. He delivered a squirrel around noon and followed that up an hour later with a large mouse. As the owlets mature, June is starting to spend more time away from the nest. In the past 24 hours, she has made at least four departures that lasted between fifteen and forty five minutes. She has, however, never returned with food. The owlets spend about half of these outings huddled together resting, and the other half in increasingly intense sumo wrestling bouts. These struggles now involve shifts in foot position to gain leverage. Wally also attempts to subdue Theodore by resting his full weight on Theodore's back for extended periods.

Darker feathers are starting to replace the pure white down on Wally's back and both owlets occasionally flap their rapidly developing wings. Wally is just over seven inches long and Theodore is about six inches from tail to nose. You might want to make your own estimates as we proceed by scaling from the known fourteen-inch dimensions of the nest box floor.

Ward will have to continue his daylight hunting if the owlets are to be fed today, as there was no food on the floor of the nest again this morning. June has been whining throughout the morning. The egg mysteriously vanished between 4pm and 6pm yesterday and I suspect that it contributed to the nourishment of the family. (11pm)

5-6-98: At noon yesterday, June left the nest to spend three hours roosting and preening in the treetops with Ward. (I was able to get photographs of them together and hope to have them on the site in the next few days) There was no evidence of any hunting during this outing and the two mice remaining from the previous night seemed to satisfy the owlets. The heavy rains that fell throughout last night adversely affected both Ward and June's hunting. While they managed to feed the owlets several times during the nigh, there were only a few scraps remaining in the nest this morning. I now realize that the "Sumo wrestling" that occurs while June is out is a rehearsal for the struggle to get the best feeding position. Wally scored several "takedowns" to remove Theodore from his feeding position yesterday and usually sat on him to keep him from getting back up. June does not seem nearly as desperate as she has during past food shortages, and may have plans for later in the day. She is now parceling out the remaining scraps of food to the owlets and is controlling Wally by holding him down with her wing.. (11am)

5-11-98: Wally and Theodore's behavior at their 5:15am feeding today could only be described as ferocious. Ward delivered a mouse at this time and the boys literally climbed all over June as they snapped their beaks to get their share. They have not been fed again since, but have nonetheless slept very quietly for most of this cold rainy day. There were at least two other feedings last night. June has remained inside the nest with the owlets rather than perching in nearby trees today. I don't know if it's their better behavior or the cold wet weather that brought her in. Wally is three weeks old today and is spending more and more time looking up at the owlet ladder. June and the owlets are now sleeping. (2pm)

Back To: May Activity Calendar