Gallery A bit wary Do not even think about taking my rats! Breakfast Sleepy time Catching some rays Sibling owlet being deposited above First view of Mom on nest with owlet Ferns add so much to our decor First Owlet down being returned to nest Passing inspection We are too sure about this brancher business We love to snuggle Yummy leftovers! “They are NOT pets!” Fashionable headgear in case Mom attacks I have a rat tail caught in my beak Breakfast Yummy Twinkle toes fell to ground while being fed by Mom this morning 7 am We were not ready to be branchers In the garden again Standing up in original nest We like our new home. February 27, 2014 Oops. This is not where I went Next time could we please get a roof? Early morning breakfast delivery NO. I will be fine. Don’t worry… 2nd Floor outlook, when is dinner? Rats! Why the parent owl on watch is hard to spot Carrying ‘bucket’ owlet up past other owlet What took you so long? Our back garden Live Oaks Moving back to nook Parent can’t even watch this time! compacting Mom arrives with dinner, a cedar waxwing Exploring the second floor, using wings to balance. Morning showers all wet close up Rainy day on the marsh Bamboo pole I COULD cilmb back up, but…. Posing politely for photos i can barely hang on. I really want to be a marsh owl. Parent in tall pine can’t even watch! A Hard to spot adult parent on the near watch I am fine. MiniMe hanging out in the Cedar Tree Wednesday afternoon In the marsh, natural GPS? We love to snuggle First Owlet down being returned to nest Being inspected for injury Yummy leftovers! Snuggling and so happy the Tinkle Toes did not go exploring again. And then getting stuck! Hiding in the Cedar Tree Trying out the second floor Vanessa Kauffmann photographing the owlets It was not a good night… Marsh trek rest Does the phrase “sitting duck” apply here? Control the talons first, then the beak. Wear gloves. Uh oh, I must have fallen asleep and missed the tide So much to explain… It was a really long, interesting journey. I can totally relate to the Geico Gecko… I cover box with blanket to hopefully settle it down Sunday afternoon snooze My wing feathers are developing, I looking more like Mom everyday Where is MY rat? I am still waiting….. I seriously thought we done with the ladder work The tide is out but no one is giving me any advice or directions. There does not appear to be any ferry service…. Debbie retrieves MiniMe Looks like my foster parent Dad and Steve at Flight demonstration Center for Birds of Prey I STILL do not want to come home… Passing inspection I am going to need a bigger ladder Expelling Owl Pellet And this tree comes with breakfast! My what big feet I have! OMG Back together again. Well close enough. Big Foot is right overhead above me Good morning peek-a-boo Very wary when feeding the kids And I stay here almost all night We were not ready to be branchers My parent is watching over me… This is why it took me so long. Finding an owlet in the marsh is not as easy as it seems Not me either! Supervising the photo shoot In the garden again And there is more…. Uh oh. There’s a moat… Nancy texts me I am feeling much better now We are getting hungry Could she at least wait until we’re done with hair and makeup? Recovering on the ground after near fatal sswim Fashionable headgear in case Mom attacks Is that what I thing it is? White Ibis Preening Don’t eat!!! Mm begins another journey, this time across land instead of the marsh Snuggled into the nook to keep warm. We even have a leftover mouse! Hide and Seek in the trees… Looking rather lion like Journey to The ISLAND All dry Getting ready to go back in a tree Once in the box, it lets go of my red glove Debbie demonstrates how to hold the owlet for examination A bit wary uh oh. Mom watching from the tall pines Settling into our new digs Using wings to get through tall spartina grass Pardon my rear I don’t know if I can make it…again… Oops. This is not where I went Waking Up So embarrassing. Kind of like that squirrel thing. My tide clock was off a bit too… Do not even think about taking my rats! Looking for our parents Someone PLEASE call 911 Marsh Owl Standing up in original nest One owlet is thriving What took those humans so long to get me back up here? Made it across! Breakfast Yummy MM in lichen tree and sees a familiar face Same photo, zoomed in I look like I am singing, but I am not. I feel a nap coming on View from back garden to tall pines Oops caught Uh oh…this can’t be good We really do not want to talk to you right now Almost done Hanging on too long??? I can not get loose Hmmmmmm…….. And this tree comes with breakfast! Back in the tree? After that long journey? Crap. Déjà vu all over again.. Early morning sunshine after our breakfast MiniMe is heading back to the marsh! The WHOLE rat???? Great Horned Owlets Snuggled in our new home After exam Tall pines on high marsh island. Parent Hangout Code Red Owlet Down February 22 Parent on ‘the perch’. Sleepy time Really??? Me? I wasn’t doing anything….. Early morning hunting I am all wet and SALTY! Back in the nest tree I swear I do not know where MiniMe is Am I getting tan yet? One owlet or two? Falle owlet placed on branch above Klingon Can’t wait to get my big boy/girl feathers Ditto Hangin in the rain in our first nest i should probably just get in without a fuss My Big Sibling is on The ISLAND! Getting harassed by other birds just trying to look after my kids. I have something caught in my gizzard Uh oh that wing is going to knock me out of the tree! Discovering my new home it is a very, very long story Dad with one owlet Expelling a pellet It was another long,…really… long…night What happened Sunday night? Are we done yet? Recovering on the ground after near fatal drowning STILL waiting, watching for Mom (and/or Dad). Do not even think about cuddling up to me after you ate the WHOLE thing! Free fallin’ Clumsy. Clumsy. Clumsy. An owlet on good behavior: Big Sib in tree No. I do not want to go back in the tree Meanwhile Big Sib is still comfortably in the Live Oak tree near our garden An Owlet on not good behavior: MiniMe on favorite place – the ground Waiting for the tide to go out Don’t think I can make it Hanging out on the 2nd floor MiniMe looks dreadful I am in big trouble here I am really high up here! And more… Checking on kids from the pines Mom feeds Big Sib first We like our new home. February 27, 2014 Yay! For MiniMe! Tide coming in fast I complied The Box Chiin’ in the new ‘hood Swan dive ?????????????????????? Sun setting, getting close to feeding time What took you so long to come find me? This is really, really not looking good… I am so depressed I am going to stay in bed and eat worms Debbie Mauney retrieves the owlet from the box so she can examine it for injuries Parent watching over the journey Marsh view from the rear It’s cold today! Catching some rays Similar to what we find beneath the nest area. (Photo from owloasis) I hope Mom and Dad know I am up here…. We are too sure about this brancher business Crossing the mercy I swear Seriously, do NOT tell me what to do! … Precarious ladder position into thin air Am I getting tan yet? All dry from the front Dad keeping warm on back porch during owlet watch. Back-in-the-box! The sun feels so good! Asking for divine intervention? Beginning to dry out Ferns add so much to our decor Thanks, I’ve got this now… Recovering from near fatal swim My big sib is just sitting there watching, right above me! Two owlets restored to River Birch tree branches. Waiting for the tide to go out? No, but you are bigger than me.. Feeing safer Too bad my foster parent cannot fly as well as she can paddle Trying to make dinner when all I want to do is observe the owlets and their dinner Maybe I should reconsider the cedar tree… Is MiniMe looking a bit forlorn to you? Where is the ground? Exploring the big blue pot MiniMe is hard to find I am on a mission to find my parents or breakfast… All I get is the blank stare Cedar Tree on easement Tide is coming in fast I am hungry!!! Basking in the sun photo op Breakfast I cannot keep as a pet ;-( Trying to escape foster parent OMG Dad is watching over us Twinkle toes fell to ground while being fed by Mom this morning 7 am I am caught…. White Ibis Gathering MiniMe looks dreadful. And hurt. In the early morning… I’m coming MM Afternoon nap on the 2nd floor Hi Mom! It didn’t last long………. Hide and Seek Three owlet pellets Sleepy after all the commotion MiniMe hears its Mother’s call Finally, someone that knows what they are doing What do owlets eat? I can explain… Guess Hoo? Zeroing in on the kids I have a rat tail caught in my beak I am determined to be a marsh owlet From a distance it is hard to tell Mm from stumps Getting closer Happy Feet This not what HF told me about the marsh and the tide and… I don’t know why I am in the marsh again Sibling owlet being deposited above It was a very long night Catching some rays Where is MiniMe? This may take a while… One parent always on watch Not my best morning This is not where I went Exploring the garden First morning on the island I have changed my mind about going to The ISLAND Photo Op! And more… First view of Mom on nest with owlet I do!!! Peek! hanging out in cedar tree I am a wood owl, NOT a shore bird…Pluff Mud? Are you serious? Warmest, best spot On the hunt early Wednesday morning I know I got UP here…… Life is good! This is NOT what I expected on my inaugural fledge! Foster parent, Dale , tries one more time to put me in a tree… I am compacting, not singing Even my petticoat is getting fluffy again Drying out and feeling better Ladder goes back up to the nest tree I am very, very weary… Tide is coming in, can’t get back to high ground Ok Back in the tree, sort of. Prey of the day and corresponding owlet pellets Trying to nap up here before I figure out how I am going to get down for dinner. Makes the crossing to The ISLAND “They are NOT pets!” Finally! On the The ISLAND! Getting back to dry land What next? Expelling pellet. Now what do I do with this thing? MiniMe is squawking in the marsh I am just taking a snooze I am trying! Really trying…. Tuesday morning so, so pitiful