Big news!!

Time for another update on the Ward owls. In the past the D#%^ crows have been a nuisance for the owls. For some reason this year they have been relentless in there harassment of the owls and the nest box. Many times throughout the day I see and hear them chasing both of the adults around and attacking the box. Today they were exceptionally pesky. I was out on the deck this afternoon when they were causing a real ruckus, as you can (almost) see in this video.

Dave has been very bothered by this and being the young (read last blog) hunter he is, he decided to put an end to it. RIGHT, good luck with that. It made him feel good to make the effort.

Hootie retreated to the nest and was acting strangely. Normally she will just fly into the box but, this time she stood on the perch and just looked in. She wondered back and forth outside the box. I was curious about what was going on so I walked to the driveway for a better angle. Watch and enjoy!!! If you listen closely you can hear a screeching sound. They do this often, coming and going to the nest, or letting the owlets know they are near. We will also hear that all summer as the owlets call for food or if Hootie and Blowfish want to warn them.



Yep, today was the first sighting of Ward Owlet "09".


And then a few seconds later Ward Owlet #2


If you remember I mentioned in a past blog that the trees have grown and it was hard to get a good clear shot of the nest box. Well once I saw the babies we had to deal with the branch issue. Dave being the brave young (again see previous blog) man he is took his life in his hands and went to cut a few trees down. Both owls sat closely to the nest and kept a very close watch, but let him complete the task.

Another video (picture with buttons) of the goings on today in the box. Sorry about the noise it was Dave's truck coming up the driveway.



After dinner tonight I went out to see what might be going on. I thought this was a nice parting shot.




OK, so this is where the real obsession begins. Now there are some family members that will tell you that I want to spend all my time watching the owlets.....SO, NOT true! It is not that I WANT to watch them, I do it for all of you who can't be here to see them in person!! :) Enjoy!!