Screech Owl Feeding Frenzy

S

Screech Owl Feeding Owlets 

 One of the most action-packed and exciting times to observe screech owls is at fledging time. (Note: I did verify that fledging is a real word) The first owlet fledged on the morning of May 10th and hid in a nearby Palmetto tree leaving two owlets remaining in the nest. All three are totally dependent on the parents and hungry. Feeding  of the owlets begins immediately at dusk by both parents. One after another they bring food to the nest box and to the owlet in the nearby tree. Due to the demand for food they seem to go for low-hanging fruit in the form of readily available and catch-able insects rather than assorted reptiles and small mammals. Which reminds me of a future column - don't use pesticide in your back yard if you want to attract and keep owls - but I digress.

These seven pictures were taken between 836 and 9pm on May 10th - and do not cover all the feedings  - just the ones I could catch with my camera with flash on a tripod. In future posts I'll discuss owl photography and basic equipment. But in this case I was sitting quietly on a bench within 15 feet of the nest box with tripod set up. After two-months the owls are very tolerant of us and will go about their business as long as we do not approach. The hour between 830 and 930 pm this night was the most amazing and gratify part of providing the Screech Owls with a home. The following evening the two remaining owlets left the nest while we held a small fledging party.  They certainly gave more to us than we to them - they will be missed until next year.
 I've recorded a large volume of stills, sound and video during the past two months and will continue to retroactively post our experiences with the Screech Owls.

Florida Eastern Screech Owls Feeding Baby Owlets Outside Nest Box