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Great Horned Owl This Great Horned Owl baby is the first of the 1999 season for the Raptor
Rehabilitation Program. In the Mid-South area the Great Horned Owls are the earliest
raptors to nest. It is not unusual to see active courting and nestbuilding in
mid-December, and young are present in nests by early January. As with most owls that
build nests (as opposed to the cavity nesters like Screech and Barn Owls), Great Horned
Owls nests are of the most basic type, usually only a few twigs or small branches in the
crook of a tall tree. This is fine until the young are a few weeks old at which time they
are most likely to fall out. This is the size we usually receive them at the rehab center.
The babies are not actually "orphans" as they will continue to be fed and cared
for by their parents, even though they are out of the nest and often on the ground. When
they are picked up by a concerned citizen they are really being kidnapped. If left alone
they will be raised normally by the parents. It is usually only a week or so before they
can manage to fly well enough to get off the ground. It is much better for the bird to be
left alone to be raised by parents than for some kind hearted person to pick them up and
bring them to the rehab center. Of coarse if the bird is in immediate danger from dogs or
cats, or if it is in an area with a good chance of coming into contact with people
(usually a residential park or a new subdivision), then it should be picked up and
transferred to the rehab center. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD THE BABY BE RAISED BY YOU. |