Congratulations Kanga on 500 Days of Broadcasting

Adventures & NiteTime Antics

2 treats delivered by Mel.
A rat to Boomer at 9:24pm
and another Mel delivery to Boomer but Mags steals and gulps down at 11:41pm
Another treat to Boomer at 2:03am

If you look in the far back of this picture you can see Owl sitting in the tree,
This has been known to be a favorite place of Sydney's.
Is she watching the nest?

Is this Sydney on the playground?
Soon the parents will be luring out the owlets with food.
Is this the start?

3 treats total for the night

Daytime Owlets

Classroom Chat Q&A with EagleEye - 4/19/12

10:28 EagleEye_: Good afternoon Mrs Foshey and welcome Broward Community Charter School 3rd graders!!!!
10:28 jenuin16: TY!
10:28 EagleEye_: ops I spelled your name wrong, sorry, it is hard some times typing with talons ;)
10:28 jenuin16: LOL
10:29 EagleEye_: We are so happy that you have had the opportunity to watch Mel & Syds nest this year and share in the wonderful world of wildlife and what it takes to survive in the wild.
10:30 jenuin16: We have loved it.
10:30 EagleEye_: At this age the owlets are now old enough not to need Syd, the mom in the nest all day as they are growing and developing, now they are old enough to regulate thier body temperature and can swallow food whole so the parents spend the day out side the nest
10:31 EagleEye_: Most of the day the owlets spend sleeping, preening, grooming and practice grabbing things with thier feet to develop the skill to use thier feet when they leave the nest
10:32 EagleEye_: Your teacher gave me questions you had about the owls so I'll start with those now.
10:32 EagleEye_: Cecilia asks: How big is the owl box and Is this the first time it is being used?
10:32 EagleEye_: ? The Barn Owl nest box is 30" long, 18" high, 16" wide and is located about 16 feet above ground level. This is the 2nd year that Mel & Syd have used this nest.
10:33 EagleEye_: Mannaica asks: Does it keep the babies safe from predators, or can something still get in?
10:33 EagleEye_: Being so high in the sky it keeps the owlets safe from animals living on the ground and also being enclosed they are safe from most predators.
10:33 EagleEye_: Michelle asks: Are the babies going to still live in the box after they grow up, or do they have to find another box?
10:34 EagleEye_: Mel & Syd will not allow them back to the nest after they lay the next clutch of eggs. In some cases like we have seen here “Dinky” the youngest one from last years off spring keeps coming to visit but Mel & Syd don’t allow him to get to close or comfortable with the nest.
10:34 EagleEye_: Cecilia asks: How can we tell the difference between Mel and Sydney?
10:34 EagleEye_: First by size, the females in bird of prey species is always larger than the males. Then we also look at their colors, Mel is much more whiter on his chest and face and Syd has more spots and has a rusty color. We can also tell by behavior with owls since only the female incubates the eggs and cares for the young.
10:35 EagleEye_: Zhane asks: How many babies can they have?
10:35 EagleEye_: They lay eggs according to how plentiful the prey is in the area so if there are a lot of rodents then they will lay a lot of eggs, it can be from 4 -12 eggs but it depends a lot on the environment around them, nature seems to know what the right number is.
10:36 EagleEye_: Tamiyah asks: How much does a month old owlet weigh and How much does an adult owl weigh?
10:36 EagleEye_: A month old owlet weights less then half a pound and in adult owls the males weigh about 15.oz and the female weights about 20 ounces so that is just a little over a pound.
10:36 EagleEye_: Tyler asks: How long is an adult Barn Owl’s wing compared to an Adult Bald Eagle’s wing?
10:37 EagleEye_: An owls wing span is approximately 40 plus inches which is about 3 feet, it depends on the size and sex of the owl. A Bald Eagles wing span is 72-96 inches which is equivalent to 6-8 ft.
10:37 EagleEye_: am I going to fast or is it ok?
10:38 EagleEye_: Mrs. Forshey comments & asks: About two weeks ago, we saw an owlet with a mouse in its beak, shaking it up and down. It looked so funny like it was dancing! I had told the students that this was because the baby didn’t know how to use its talons to hold the food down and tear it. I have since learned that I was wrong about how owls eat. Would you please give a much better
10:38 EagleEye_: answer than mine about how owls eat and what the owlet was trying to do by bouncing its head up and down?
10:39 EagleEye_: What you saw was the owlet first having to learn to position the prey “head first” because that is the way it has to be in order to go down their throat with out the tail or feet creating a problem bending the wrong way.
10:39 EagleEye_: The action the owlets make by bouncing their heads up and down is contracting the muscles in its jaw and throat pulling the food down into it’s digestive system. If you have ever seen a snake eat it is pretty similar in the contraction movements made.
10:40 EagleEye_: Carynna asks: I saw a hole in their mouth. How can they live with that?
10:40 EagleEye_: What you are seeing is the breathing hole in their tongue, this is the air way they use when they are eating and moving food down their throat, with this air hole in their tongue they can swallow whole prey and not choke or pass out from lack of oxygen.
10:41 EagleEye_: Tapanga asks: What other things do they eat? Do they eat any human food?
10:41 EagleEye_: Their diet consists of only meat so they eat rodents like rats, mice, gophers and rabbits, they can’t digest vegetables at all so they are strictly “carnivores” which means meat eaters.
10:42 EagleEye_: Raven asks: We know that an eagle egg is about the size of a tennis ball and a humming bird egg is a small as a Tic Tac mint. How does an owl egg compare in size?
10:42 EagleEye_: An owl egg is approximately the same size as a golf ball or a ping pong ball.
10:42 EagleEye_: Carynna asks: Why do they look so pink when they hatch?
10:43 EagleEye_: When they hatch they have hardly any feathers at all they just have small “downy” feathers that will grow so you are actually seeing their pink skin.
10:43 EagleEye_: Sean asks: How much do the babies have to eat per day? What about for an adult?
10:43 EagleEye_: The amount they need to eat is based on how old they are, very young owlets only need about half a mouse per day were the older ones are ok with just a couple rodents per day. An adult owl can survive on just one gopher or rat per day. A lot depends on how much energy they are expending, the more active they are the more food they need.
10:44 EagleEye_: Evana asks: Will Mel and Sydney stay together, like eagles do?
10:44 EagleEye_: Yes, all most all birds will remain together their entire lives once they bond and become mates. This bond is what makes them such great parents.
10:45 EagleEye_: Anthony asks: We can’t wait to see the owlets fly! When do you think they will fly for the first time?
10:45 EagleEye_: The young “fledge” when they are all most 2 months old, 52-56 days from the hatching date.
10:45 EagleEye_: Willy asks: Do they keep growing after the first year?
10:46 EagleEye_: By the time they fledge from the nest they are about full grown and will not get any bigger but they will molt their feathers each year and by the second year their adult colors come in and you can tell if they are male or female.
10:46 EagleEye_: Jia Wei asks: How old will an owl be when it gets to be an adult and starts looking for a partner and have babies?
10:46 EagleEye_: They will be considered adults at 2 years of age and by then have mastered the skills of hunting and surviving in the wild. At this time they find their own territory if they are a male and will then make calls to attract a female to nest with.
10:47 EagleEye_: Zhane asks: Do owls hibernate?
10:47 EagleEye_: No, owls do not hibernate, they have to stay active and hunt all year because of their body size and they don’t accumulate a lot of fat to live off of like bears.

GHO Owlets

The owls can be seen from the walking trail along the river at Sidecut Park in Maumee, Ohio.