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Update late September 2011
The barn owls have completed all nesting activities and the streaming camera views were discontinued for the year. Viewers are able to check on activities in the nest box by clicking the 10 second image update. Barn owls can nest early in the year and we will continue to monitor the nest box and provide updates and streaming video for 2012.
Update late June, 2011
The young barn owls have left the nestbox and the streaming video has been turned off. Check the ten second update for their occasional visit.
Update late May, 2011
Mid-May saw most of the young fledgling owls leave the nest-box with only two remaining. Some days three or fewer birds are observed in the nest box. The young owls continue to use the nest box as a resting spot as they build their hunting and flight skills. Soon the owls will permanently depart the nest box and be on their own with fewer feedings from the adults.
Update late April, 2011
The female barn owl has left the nest box. This is normal at a point where the nest box environment is fairly stable and the owlets are capable of maintaining stable body temperatures and can feed themselves. Both adult owls will conduct regular food drops of rodents in the nest box, assuming the rodent population is adequate. A danger at this transition time is the older siblings picking on and even eating their younger and smaller siblings. This is what has happened over the weekend April 16-17when the youngest owlet was consumed by its siblings.
The act of siblicide–although difficult to observe– is a common outcome for a meat eating bird (like barn owls) with asynchronous hatching, where eggs are laid and hatched at different times. This allows for easy siblicide as the first chick is older and much larger than the last. Ecological studies suggest that siblicide allows for the greatest number of owlets to survive to match the available food supply. Low food resources increase conflict among siblings which leads to a greater chance of siblicide. The end result of the situation is that a few strong and well-fed owlets survive instead of many weaker birds.
You may not see the adult owls again this nesting season since they most often drop rodents into the nest box and continue to hunt as the owlets are consuming vast numbers of rodents as they continue to grow. Please take the time to understand and explain this ecological act and behavior to yourself and others – particularly young viewers.
To learn more about the ecological role of siblicide in nature check out the Related Links labeled – The Ecological Role of Siblicide
