Owls are Gentle and Loving Parents

For several years, a pair of Great Horned Owls has nested within the Old Burying Ground in an ancient live oak tree. Returning in 2024, they settled in to the hollowed cavity used previously, raising just one baby owl. Here is Junior, who hatched in February, snuggling with Dad at the age of one month, when he can finally peek over the edge of the nest…

Isn’t it remarkable that this fierce predatory bird can be so gentle with its young? The following photos show how the Great Horned Owls seem to form strong bonds with their offspring, providing significant care and protection for five or six months. Here is Mom taking a turn to share the nest with her little fluffball…

Active mostly at night, they snoozed during daylight hours…

In April, the parents often left Junior alone in the nest…

But never completely alone. One or both parents rested in nearby trees, keeping watch over the nest…

Sitting with dad after sharing a mid-day snack…

By mid-April, Junior started getting restless. He climbed up the nest tree, pausing about eight feet above the nest, then higher, and finally flies a short distance into a cedar tree…

Junior still needed supervision, so one of his parents often sat beside him on a branch …

Here are some intimate shots of the Great Horned Owl’s style of parenting. I am impressed at the level of caring, compassion and tenderness these adult birds have for their own offspring. For example, a back scratch …

Now Junior scratches Dad’s head…

Time for individual grooming too, but staying so close…

Parent allowing Junior to nibble at his talons…

Posing for a sleepy portrait when Junior is two and a half months old…

Here’s Junior at 3 months…

Note that his talons (below, on the right) are as well developed as an adult’s, indicating that he can hunt and kill…

He has grown so much under the tender loving care of his parents…

It is now May and the pair bond continues as the family remains within trees in the Old Burying Ground…

Junior has lost most of his fluffy down feathers…

In July, the pair are still together in a secluded place…

At five months of age, Junior is left to fend for himself, as both parents seem to be off on vacation…

Six months old in August, 2024, about full size and independent, often flying to other parts of town…

When his parents return to their territory in the Old Burying Ground in the fall, Junior will probably have left to find his own way in the world. If not, he will get booted out by the adults preparing for a new season of courtship. Here’s another look at a tender moment between fledgling and parent…

To see more photos of young owls…

• Owl Family Album (2023) >>
• Two Owl Nestlings (2022) >>
• Two Owl Fledglings (2022) >>