Great-Horned Owls - Love is in The Air!

‘Tis the season. For Great-Horned Owls, that is.

For Great-Horned Owls, that is. Early Winter is the time of year when these fierce and loyal owls start courting and pairing up, preparing to raise their families. Great-Horned Owls are the largest owl species native to the Southeast. They are committed to their mate for life, and for good reason – it takes both parents to successfully raise their brood of chicks. Different from many other owl species that typically fledge and leave their parents around 3 months of age, Great-Horned Owl chicks stay with their parents for 9-12 months after hatching. During this time, they rely on their parents to feed them, train them to hunt, and prepare them to live on their own. If one parent dies, the entire family is likely to fail. It's just too much work for one parent.
Generally, these owls produce 1-4 eggs once a year. That's a lot of mouths to feed in addition to their own! Each chick needs to consume massive amounts of food for growth and maintenance, requiring parents to hunt – and successfully capture – multiple prey items each and every day. In the early weeks after hatching, Mom owl stays with the chicks to protect them while Dad brings home the bacon. Or rats. Or squirrels. Whatever. By 3 weeks of age, the chicks are almost as large as the parents! They still lack full adult feathering, but they have voracious appetites. At this point, both parents must hunt to keep everyone fed, leaving the chicks alone for the first time. And this is when the chicks can start getting into trouble.
Great-Horned Owls do not build their own nests. Instead, they take over an abandoned squirrel's nest or whatever resembles a nest. They do minimal upgrades and then lay their eggs. This is fine for eggs, but it often fails after the chicks hatch and quickly grow into adult-sized owls that are still "babies." Because the nest is barely sufficient to begin with, when the chicks begin moving about, they sometimes fall out of the nest. Or as they grow and start climbing branches on the tree, they can easily tumble to the ground. Not to worry – they rarely suffer injuries from these falls. However, at this point, they are like teenagers that think they are all grown up and know everything and are at the "you can't tell me what to do" stage. It must be a nightmare for the parents. They have lost all control, but they faithfully and diligently continue to provide for and protect these chicks as best they can. And this is all PERFECTLY NORMAL. So, if you find an owl chick on the ground, walking around like he knows what he's doing but you happen to notice some goofy looking fluff on his head, know that this is normal and that the parents are ALWAYS watching, but there is little they can do to corral these inquisitive youngsters.

          
You can give the parents a helping hand by placing the chick in a nearby crook of a tree - but beware of those feet! Even the chicks know how to use those feet and talons to defend themselves. I would always suggest contacting a professional wildlife rehabilitator for guidance and advice if you find yourself in this situation. Oh, and that thing we have all been told by our mothers about how wild animals will reject their young if they have human scent on them? That is completely false, especially when it comes to birds. I have renested a couple of hundred owls over the last 25 years, using wicker baskets to create a new substitute nest when needed, and even fostered orphaned chicks from another owl pair into a new family. The parents couldn't care less if I touched their babies. Their only concern is for their babies, and if a new head appears in their nest, they might be baffled, but they raise it as their own.
The Great-Horned Owl pair on the Isle of Palms has been doing their thing on the island for years. This is their home for life. I have been involved in multiple "rescues" here when their offspring leave the nest and start cruising around the island, walking around like they own the place until a resident helps them find their way home. Because when it comes to raising kids, sometimes it takes a village, and fortunately for these owls, the Isle of Palms community is exactly that. A village of conservation-minded folks, always willing to lend a helping hand. If you'd like to be a part of this amazing community, give me a call. Let's find your new home here on Isle of Palms!

CLICK HERE for all homes for sale on IOP and call me today!