Tag: baby barred owls

It’s twins!

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography8 Comments

Since I only saw one of the baby barred owls in early March I had to go back and see if I could see the twins together. I got to the park before the sun had come up over the trees (and it was a cloudy at first) and sure enough, they were both looking out of the nest.  That small hole was getting crowded as the babies were getting bigger.

Mom was sleeping far back in the leaves.

After an hour the sun was finally on the nest which made the babies fall asleep.

I took the above with my phone and it was zoomed in so you can see how tiny the babies looked with the naked eye (follow the yellow arrow). The nest is across a creek and the trail in front was fenced off.

We realized that there was a squirrel nest in the bottom of the same tree. Two tiny squirrels that were almost grown kept poking their heads out.

Turkey vultures greeted me as I got back to the parking lot.

Saturday's Critters

A face only a Mom could love

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography7 Comments

In early March word got out that there was a barred owl nest at Largo Nature Preserve. I made it over there a week later and the nest was easy to find. It was sitting right on a main trail just off the parking lot. There were 2 babies but after standing there for over an hour I only saw one. These were all taken with my 600mm lens and cropped up so we were actually across a creek from the tree.

Sleepy baby was yawning.

Looking across the creek near the nest.

Mom was sitting in a nearby tree keeping an eye on the nest. We didn’t find Dad that morning. I’m sure he was sleeping somewhere nearby.

Scratching an itch on that big foot!

Something pretty was growing on the bottom of the nest tree.

A red maple tree was full of those “helicopter” seeds.

Lantana growing nearby.

I had to go back to see both babies so more on this nest later.

SkyWatch Friday

A new owl family

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography5 Comments

I was thinking I had missed the baby owl season when I went for a walk at Chesnut Park in early April. There was a 2nd barred owl family and my timing was pretty good. Both babies were right on the boardwalk.

The oldest baby was so cute, looking around at everything with such curiosity.

Mom was nearby watching both babies.

The younger baby was just a little bit fuzzier than it’s older sibling and was sitting lower in another tree. I waited a short while to see if Mom would get some food and feed them but they all stayed in their spots so I headed down the boardwalk to see what else I could find.

A rabbit was chomping on the grass out in the field.

The lake looked good enough to jump in but I knew it was filled with alligators. Yes, people ski on this lake but they say the alligators stay close to the edges in the quiet spots. I wouldn’t risk it.

A few fly overs included a swallow tail kite and a great egret.

This limpkin had a yummy snack. He had pulled the meat out of an apple snail and was gulping it down in pieces.

Before leaving I stopped by the owl area again and the babies had moved farther back into the woods. I saw Mom sitting on a branch right up against the trail. Then I noticed a squirrel was on the same branch farther down and was  climbing up near the owl. They were so close I took the above with my phone.

A short video of the squirrel getting closer to the owl. I couldn’t decide if the squirrel was stupid, brave or crazy. He would run up to the owl and then run down again and did this several times. Finally the squirrel jumped off the branch and ran under the boardwalk. Mom owl just sat there. She must have already eaten.

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Linking to A Stroll Thru Life.

Twins

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography1 Comment

Mom was napping close to the trail.

The barred owl twins were close by, very curious about everything.  They were checking out every bird, butterfly or bee that came by. They were only a short time away from fledging, days or maybe a week.

A ruby throated hummingbird was sitting on a nest near the nature center. It looked like a bug sitting on top of a golf ball with the naked eye.

The squirrels were being their usual cute selves.

A walk through Lettuce Lake Park in late March.

Surprise! It’s twins!

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

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The barred owls had a nest at the busiest trail intersection at Circle B Bar Reserve. Everyone coming from the parking lot got a glimpse of the babies.  The entire 4 hours I was there, the bigger baby was sleeping on a low branch right over the trail. Someone did say they saw it yawning a few times but I only saw it sleeping.

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The smaller baby was in another tree on the other side of the trail. He was very curious about that fern growing out of the branch in front of him. These were all taken directly in the sun so it was hard to get a good clear shot of his face and color.

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Later in the day I stopped by before leaving and he was sleeping like his bigger sibling.

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One of the parents was close by, trying to sleep in the sun.

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The other parent was trying to hide higher up in a tree.  He looked tired. Aren’t most parents of twins?  Trying to feed two hungry beaks.

An unexpected surprise in the big tree by the parking lot. I don’t think the owls have nested there before. They will probably be all grown up before I make it out to the park again. Sigh! They grow up so fast.