Barn Owl (TX)
Document Actions
Camera is offline for the season. Thank you for your support, we hope to see you again next year!
Species: Barn Owl (Tyto alba)Location: Italy, TX
Status: Unsuccessful
View comments View donor list
2007 Daily Highlights (Tyto alba)
| Sept. 7 - CAM IS OFFLINE. Hope to see you next year! |
|
 |
August 8 - The owls have not been observed in the box for the last three days. We hope we will see them again soon. |
 |
July 24 - The owls may be trying
for another clutch! This is the first confirmed mating since the first failed attempt. MATING (45 second movie) |
 |
July 23 - One of the owls sat in the box for hours in this position today. |
 |
July 21 - Either the male or female feasting on a prey item. |
 |
July 16 - Here are both owls together in the box during the day preening side-by-side. |
 |
July 12 - Four hours later, one of the owls appears to be examining the nonviable eggs. |
 |
July 12 - Both owls in the box again! |
 |
July 11 - One of the owls spent roughly an hour in the box early this morning. The second bird of the pair was not seen. |
 |
June 25 - Our cameras have not
captured anything out of the ordinary lately, just the two owls
continuing to maintain their pair bond with lots of mutual preening. Female preening male (1.5 min. video) |
 |
June 14 - The pair of owls spent
about an hour in the box together this morning. The female spent some
of that time preening the male before a hasty exit. Preening & female exit (2 min. video) |
 |
June 10 - Because these birds
are not banded, it is unclear if the bird in the image covering the
unviable eggs is the same female who laid the eggs. |
 |
June 5 - The pair mated once today. The male did not deliver a prey meal. |
 |
June 4 - The young mother owl seems unsure of her role. She spent little time in the nest box today. |
 |
May 31 - She laid a third egg on the 30th! Hopefully she'll soon return to her nest box and resume incubation. |
 |
May 29 - A second egg was laid
yesterday at about 1pm EST. Normally barn owl eggs are laid in
intervals of 2-3 days, so this interval of five days is unusual. |
 |
May 27 - Perhaps due to the heat
or discomfort, the female is not here assuming the proper incubation
position, in which a special patch on her chest should contact
the egg. |
 |
May 26 - Mating, with the egg in the background. MATING (30-sec. video) |
 |
May 24 - So far she has spent little time incubating the new egg, perhaps due to the heat. |
 |
May 23 - At around 4:45pm today, the female barn owl laid her first egg! |
 |
May 22 - The eggless female continues to fixate on the galliforme bone. BONE TOY (2-MIN. VIDEO) |
 |
May 20 - The female chooses one of the two fresh prey animals from her "gift" prey pile. |
 |
May 19 - It appears from the nest box stills that the pair mated at least six times over the course of the day. |
 |
May 18 - They mated at least four times overnight. |
 |
May 17 - Barn owls are one of
the most widespread species of land birds, but individual barn owls
live short lives, usually not more than two years. |
 |
May 16 - The female has
displayed unusual interest in an old leg bone (possibly belonging to a
galliforme bird), pecking at it and moving it around the nest box. |
 |
May 15 - A fast mating. It's possible that it may not have been a successful copulation. MATING (1-min. video) |
 |
May 14 - This still offers a
good look at one of the owls' eyes, which often appear blurred in
the nest box's night light. |
 |
May 13 - The male delivered a
good-sized prey rodent before mating. The female took a few pecks but
stashed it in the corner until eating it whole about three hours later,
around sunrise. MATING AND PREY (3-min. video) |
 |
May 12 - With an impressive throat bulge the barn owl disposes of a large prey rodent. |
 |
May 11 - The pair keeps up the mating game, a few times per night, consistently. |
 |
May 10 - They mated twice tonight, but this time the male brought a prey rodent each time into the box. |
 |
May 9 - The owls mated three times tonight. No prey animals were brought into the box. |
 |
May 8 - The female gives the male some morning grooming attention. AFFECTIONATE PREENING (2-min. video) |
 |
May 5 - This young owl pair mated a few times today in their box. MATING (2-min. video) |
 |
May 3 - Having recently eaten,
the female here deposits a smal prey animal just given to her by the
male on the nest box prey pile. |
 |
May 2 - In recent days the owls have shown a curious, almost weird interest in a long leg bone of an unknown prey animal. |
 |
May 1 - The female pecked at
this prey animal for several hours and moved it around the nest box
several times before finally swallowing it. |
 |
Apr. 30 - The male failed to
deliver a prey animal before this act of copulation. This may be his
first breeding season, and he may still be an inexperienced hunter. |
 |
Apr. 29 - The female owl roosted
and rested with her wings in an unusual, low, stretched position for
several hours today, possibly to cool herself down. |
 |
Apr. 28 - The female regurgitates a pellet. Barn owls cast a pellet once or twice per day. PELLET (1-MIN. VIDEO) |
 |
Apr. 28 - Mating. Mated pairs of barn owls usually breed in or very near to the same nesting site year after year. MATING (2-MIN. VIDEO) |
 |
Apr. 27 - The female has just
been given this small rodent by the male. It's probabaly a vole, one of
the principal prey animals for barn owls. |
         |
Apr. 26 - The pair mated
with each other several times today. One of the romantic rituals
employed during the mating process is the crouching position taken up
by the female, which informs the male of her readiness. Apr. 25 - Following their custom, this act of copulation was preceded by a gift of a dead rodent from the male to the female. After the copulation, the female ate it. Apr. 23 - The mating season continues for this pair. Sometimes a harsh winter or similar environmental factor can delay the onset of egg laying. Apr 21 - As you can see from its dilated breast, the barn owl has just swallowed a large prey animal that had been stored on a pile inside the nest box. Apr. 20 - The nest box didn't see much activity today. Barn owls are highly efficient hunters, so they have plenty of leisure time. Apr. 19 - This mating pair is obviously bonded. Egg laying usually occurs about a month after courtship begins, so an egg could appear any time now. Apr. 18 - Barn owls almost always swallow their prey whole, but this rabbit was so big that the female took a few bites first. SWALLOWING A RABBIT (4 min. video) Apr. 14 - The male balances himself duting copulation by spreading his wings and grasping the back of the female's neck with his claws. Apr. 5 - Ordinarily, the male can expect the female to willingly copulate with him after he brings prey to her in the nestbox. Here however she reacts aggressively and the male simply takes back the dead rodent and leaves. FOOD DELIVERY AND TAKE-OUT (1.5 min. video) |
 |
Mar. 30 - Not all copulations are successful, as illustrated in this short video. UNSUCCESSFUL MATING ATTEMPT (1 min. video) |
 |
Mar. 29 - It is obvious this
pair is getting serious about breeding. All is quiet in the box and
with just a bit of vocalization by the female, the two begin mating. SUDDEN MATING (1.5 min. video) |
 |
Mar. 27 - Undigested prey items
such as fur and bones get compacted into a tightly packed pellet which
owls expel on a daily basis. PELLET CASTING (2 min. video) |
 |
Mar. 24 - The male delivers a very large rodent, which the female devours in a matter of minutes. FOOD DELIVERY & FEEDING (5 min. video) |
 |
Mar. 22 - It is unclear if these
are the same individuals from last year, but at least we know they are
serious about breeding, as evidenced by this short video. MATING (1 min. video) |
 |
Mar 21 - For the past week the owl inside the box has been
alone. Today, it appears he has a mate. Listen to and watch the video
showing the initial aggressive interaction between the two owls. AGGRESSIVE ENCOUNTER (1 minute video) |
 |
Mar. 20 - It is unclear if this is the male or female about to exit the box holding a very large prey item. |