Owlets, owlets, owl chicks, owls. Save them and help them - DO NOT !! Acquaintance with the Long-eared Owl
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How not to save owls.
I have been working with birds of prey for many years. It happened. Naturally, I get a lot of birds in trouble. From those hit by cars and crashed into wires, windows, even planes, to “unfortunate” chicks dragged from the forest, who were “abandoned” by their parents. It is about them that we will talk. More precisely, I will tell you what to do and what not (!) To do if you find an owlet.
Owlets fall into the hands of people most often because of their super strength, which consists in the ability to get out of the nest and walk around the neighborhood as soon as their legs get stronger, long before they learn to fly. A small owlet, depending on its stubbornness and fuel supply, can walk away from the nest for tens of meters. He can climb bushes and branches, make an unhappy look and whistle very plaintively. It is very difficult to pass by and not wish him to help with all my heart.
But believe me, the child is not lost! His parents are watching him, determining by the squeak where he is, where to carry food and where to shove it.
And if you do not see adult owls, this does not mean that they do not exist. There is a chance that you will come across desperate co-parents without complexes, but you still won’t see them until they hit you on the back of the head with their paws (probably, many saw that “sensational” news where owls in the park hit people on the heads, knocking off their hats. So this is what they defended their offspring). But more often than not, owlet parents just sit quietly in the branches, waiting for you to leave and leave them alone.
Therefore, when suddenly you stumble upon an “unfortunate” owlet in the forest, frozen in shock at your sight and starting to pretend that he is dying, don’t believe it! He doesn't die. He's just afraid of you. Gather your girlfriends, friends, children, dogs and other pets in a bunch and go away without touching the chick.
No, if you take a picture of him, he won't get sick. No, his parents will not leave him if he “smells like a man” - this is one of the stupid myths invented to admonish children so that those who do not sit well, lie down or fly are not grabbed.
in this video, the tawny owl chick crawls out of the nest just at the moment of awakening its superpower, it doesn’t need your help at all.
If you see that there is a road nearby or dogs can pass, you can put the owlet on the branches. But you don't have to take it.
For those who suddenly suddenly want a cute pet, in addition to all sorts of joys such as mandatory feeding of mice and a dirty house, there is also an article on poaching and rather big fines for removing wild animals from nature. Yes, taking an owlet out of the forest / field / park - you are breaking the law!
Removal from nature of a chick of the Red Book species is a crime, and according to the methodology for calculating the amount of harm caused to objects of the animal world, it is punishable by a fine from 52 500
rubles! Shooting and seizure (without special permission) of birds of prey and owls not listed in the Red Books (kites, hawks, owls, etc.) is also prohibited. There is a penalty for this 5000
rubles for one individual!” (c) I think that it is not necessary to say that the sale of such a bird is just as illegal.
eagle owl chicks of different ages
What you need to do to help the owlet:
1. Place the chick in a cardboard box on a bed of napkins. Absolutely no cells! Adult owls should also not be caged.. An owlet can be injured there, simply by accidentally sticking a wing or paw between the bars, trying to get out. In a dark box, he will sit quietly and will not be able to harm himself.
2. Take the box with the chick and carry it to the place where you took it! (they took the chick, not the box). Even if it's been a day or more. At dusk, you can hear the squeak of other chicks, if these are, for example, long-eared owls. In the place where the chick was picked up, drop it off and quietly leave. No need to wait until dad and mom arrive and “carry away the child in their paws.” Until you leave there, no one will fly in. And the owlet will not start calling for its parents because of fear of you.
3. If you have an owlet for more than a day, then you need to feed it.
Sausage, milk, bread, cooked meat, fat, sweets and other heresy are strictly forbidden to give to owls! Owls are predators, they feed mainly on rodents. You can feed your rescued with raw chicken hearts, after cutting off all the fat from them. The heart is cut lengthwise into 4 parts, it is better to dip each piece in water and shove the owlet directly into the mouth. A wet piece will slip through faster. Most likely, the chick will rest and refuse. The beak can be opened with your fingers, just do not be zealous, otherwise you will break your jaw.
If you feed a bird with hearts a couple of times, nothing bad will happen to it. Raw chicken will also work. But you can't feed them all the time. Here is a movie about how to properly feed a long-eared owl owlet
If there is no way to return (unfortunately, this happens very often) - the children were taken away; someone brought him from a very distant wild jungle, and the map with the route must be taken from the pirates with a fight; the parents of the chick died or the brood was ruined by predatory people or other animals ... then look for a place where you can turn it in. No need to rely on local veterinary clinics. There, in 90 cases out of 100 they do not know what to do and how to do it right. If they offer to drink a solution of glucose or anoint with brilliant green - run away from there without looking back.
In St. Petersburg there is a rehabilitation center "Sirin", where wild birds and animals are nursed and prepared for release. There are people in Moscow who are trying to do the same. Specialized nurseries of birds of prey and zoos accept foundlings extremely rarely, because there are a lot of them, and food for predators is very expensive, and there are problems with the legislation, but it's worth a try.
This owlet himself went to the country house of people. At first, they simply photographed him and wanted to leave, but they noticed in time that the chick had problems with the wing and he could not fly. This owlet really needed people's help. The finders posted information about the foundling on the popular entertainment site "Peekaboo", where they could suggest how to find experienced ornithologists.
The network has already accumulated a lot of information in Russian, what and how to do with owlets. Finding a specialist and finding out the details is not particularly difficult.
But the simplest and most correct thing is not to touch the owlet. If you don't see obvious damage to it, if it's not threatened by predators and human children, walk past it, pretending you didn't notice anything.
And this is not a joke - your unusual behavior may attract other animals. For example, corvids monitor such situations very closely. Most of the nests ruined by crows and magpies are found first of all by people who climb there with their cameras, touched.
Rescuing “lost owlets” is the very example of “good” deeds that pave the road to hell. (c)
Don't pick owls! It is better to hang houses for owls from baskets, boxes and old buckets, where they will nest, then everything around will be owled and owled. It will be happier and healthier, in this movie the ornithologist just talks about the benefits of owls in the city, and at the same time, the typical cries of eared owl chicks are clearly audible.
For clarity, here is a picture to determine the main types of owls. Chicks below, adults above. From left to right:
1. Eagle owl
2. Owl
3. Gray (Tawny Owl)
4 Short-eared Owl
5. Long-eared owl
6. barn owl (barn owl)
7. Little owl
8. Rough-legged owl
9. Sparrow Owl - The size of a sparrow owl is about the size of a cigarette pack. The rest can be measured against him.
the author of the drawing of the guide to owls and their chicks
An owl's nest under the window, you see, this is somewhat unusual! Especially if we talk about the window of a high-rise building in an ordinary sleeping area. If someone else had told you, they would hardly have believed it. But if you are so lucky, then why miss the chance!
About a month ago, in the course of our evening walk, my son, having heard a thin squeak, saw a nest in the branches, and on a branch nearby, squeaking owlets. Twilight was impenetrable and the shaggy chicks were more like small gray felt boots, which from time to time tossed and squeaked desperately. The first urge was to get out in the early morning under the treasured pine tree and walk around, take pictures. No sooner said than done. Came out, took pictures, it worked. Repeated the next morning. And away we go... Accumulated on a small owl diary. Grab a cup of tea, sit back and watch!
There are two checkpoints. I couldn't choose the best one. This is quite understandable. On the Internet, owls, sorry " cuteness"They are not inferior to cats! ;)
I have been photographing birds for about a year, and friends and acquaintances often ask how boring this activity is? Also, does it take a lot of time? Alexander Druz answers: Episodic observations of birds are a very simple matter. Take at least our neighbors sparrows or swallows. They have become so trusting of us that we do not notice them. And it is worth taking a closer look and you can see a lot of interesting things. Sparrows in any park, a dozen for each bush. And swallows and swifts are not at all afraid to settle on open balconies, finding a suitable slot for a nest. For observation, desire and small binoculars are enough, "to see better."
Do you want episodic observations to become more or less regular? Then you need to at least buy a cottage, and even better - retire. The latter will allow you to stock up on free time and devote it to your favorite pastime. I'm not sure that even working on the "ornithologist" profile will allow you to allocate as much time as you would like. A good inheritance could be a good option, but this is already out of the realm of fantasy. But at his dacha, a city dweller will easily find a nest of some pichuga, which he can watch without undue zeal until the chicks fly out of the nest. And with the advent of even a little experience, you will roughly know where, when and what kind of bird to look for. I summarize: with a flexible approach to the issue, the time spent on getting decent pictures is greatly reduced!
But let's get back to owl everyday life.
31.05
Son found a nest! Evening, twilight, chicks scream and ask for food. I'm not sure it's actually an owl. But the son insists!
1.06
Early morning. From the approach I notice an adult bird. The chicks are nowhere to be seen.
Can not see. But in the photo you can already see a curious young look. Find? 
2.06
It had rained lightly the night before. In the morning I see 2 chicks next to the nest. Warm and dry in the sun.
5.06
The weather was cloudy and in the morning it was not possible to shoot anything sane.
Evening. Probably the only time I was able to capture almost the entire family at the nest in one frame. By the way, there were THREE chicks!!! 
It is curious that owls do not build their nests, occupying empty crows or magpies. 
6.06
I could not resist and posted a few shots on LiveJournal. As a result, a colleague fell on the tail. Be that as it may, the two are more fun and, as a result, more informative. What one doesn't take, another might. And two eccentrics hanging around near the nest are unlikely to greatly disturb the owls, which, to quote a familiar ornithologist, "apparently finally master the anthropogenic landscape and are not going to fly away for the winter."
The colleague slightly rattled his weapon and mentioned the video. Very handy, because I almost forgot about the pair of teleconverters lying in the stock, which, when docked with each other, turned my Nikon AF-S 300mm f / 4 into 1000mm. Photos in such a bunch turned out unconvincing, but for the video - that's it! And the owl is an owl! Smiling and posing like an old friend.
7.06
The nest has a chick and an adult bird. Baby, this is just a convention. They are growing like crazy. When the baby rises to stretch or stretch his legs-wings, it is noticeable that he will soon catch up with the size of an adult bird. It's probably the older one. 
9.06
I admire my own optimism. Once again I tried to take a photo at 1020 mm. (2 converters). It turned out a rare garbage, turning into porridge. And the video looks good! 
10.06
The chick flew off 3 branches below. It looks like they will soon move to neighboring trees. In books they write that eared owl chicks fly out of the nest on the 20-26th day.
11.06
Evening. Well, they took off. Only by crying in the evening can they be found. And in the morning there is a chance to find in the same place. I remember pine trees in the evening!)
12.06
I was right. In the morning, finding the chicks was a lot of work. They doze quietly not far from the evening location. If it wasn't for the walk the day before, I'm not sure I would have found it. Won and a colleague got scared, thought the crows pecked somewhere. No, everything is fine, took off for glory. The busiest morning ever! One of the chicks flew off decently and settled on a well-lit and not too closed branch.
When he got tired of standing, he lay down directly on a wide branch with his stomach. 
Well, he never stopped looking at me. 
One of the adult birds always stays nearby. 
It's time to pay attention to the claws of a predator. The extreme toes on the paws of an owl can turn in the opposite position. It is very convenient to hold on to a branch and a shovel! 
Visit again in the evening. 21:00 - chicks cry for food. 0:30 - everything is quiet. Apparently already fed.
13.06
Today a colleague came before me. The percentage of finding young animals is 2 out of 3. It seems that the 3rd youngest or just a notorious homebody.
One of the parents is busy guarding the rising shift. Chases from chicks flying close crows and magpies. 
Sometimes it stretches. 
And the young one, away from his parent, decided to smoke some pine. 
Reckless, of course! 
The parent is somewhere nearby. 
Smoked, yawned and sleep. 
14.06
The owl finally reminded her that she was a predator. Somewhere dragged a crow and ate it. Remained from the chick ... but nothing left. I wandered under a tree, looking and found nothing. But a colleague managed to film how crows attack an owl. 
Owl prey is swallowed whole, then regurgitating undigested food residues in the form of lumps. Once I was lucky to watch how an adult owl did it. Here's a lump for you. Can you find out what was eaten? 
Evening. Can't find the 3rd. Maybe he disappeared ... Screams are heard only in 2 places.
15.06
And here is the third one! Just two shouting sitting side by side on the same branch. 
In the evening, a trifle saw off the sun sitting on the lower branches of pines. A rarity for our furries. They usually hide on the top whorls of pines in the shade. 
And this straight-forward spitting image of "Batman" looking at Gotham from the heights of understanding what is happening. 
The place where the owls settled is very crowded. I would even say very crowded. At least half of the district is aware that we have chicks. Everyone takes pictures, who cares what. 
Fluffies are forgiving. What pleases! 
And quite at dusk I discovered a candidate for exceptional trolling of an owl. Where there is a magpie or a crow. This is a cat! One cat on the territory is enough and the chicks do not give out their location with a single squeak, but an adult bird constantly screams and flies low over the troublemaker. I noticed that she does not react so sharply to dogs.
16.06
Owlets sit straighter, confidently fly to neighboring branches. Finding them in the morning is getting harder.
17.06
Evening. For the first time I saw two adult birds at the same time. Maybe they flew to the family council? Be that as it may, the thoughts of fatherlessness in this case were unfounded!
Mom is thinner. 
Dad is broader and bigger. 
22.06
Our family again gathered on the same pine tree. Noticeably, the grayish plumage of young chicks has completely changed to brown. The chicks are growing before our eyes. Get fat! 
On the way, the young guard regularly arranges clowning for the photographer.
Oh, I'll sing! 
Trying on the mustache. 
How the kids have grown up is clearly visible when they stretch. The feather is almost like that of an adult bird. 
By the way, the bunches of feathers on the head, for which the owl got its name "eared" have nothing to do with the ears. The ears of owls are located on the sides of the head and are arranged asymmetrically. 
It is difficult to see them, but it is possible when the bird decides to scratch a little. 
In an adult bird, the ears look very interesting. 
The eyes of an owl are arranged so that the pupils are motionless. However, the amazingly flexible neck of the bird allows it to turn its head 270 degrees. This is from the books. For me, it's all 360! 
23.06
Evening. It's hot in the city. During the day up to 36 degrees. The family has moved and hides on a more shady birch.
Decided to make a little video and did not lose. Below is a small but terribly cool video about how an owl chick falls asleep. First he puffs, and then...
Be sure to watch! Morpheus appeared at the 33rd second and stayed with us for another 15 minutes.
The trinity sat down together in the morning, probably in order to look decent. I tried not to disappoint.
We comb our hair and get rid of dandruff. 
We pose in three profiles. 
And one more cute picture for memory. 
26.06
Birds in the evening are very mobile, both adults and chicks. Young people are not yet able to eat on their own. Exploiting parents. I would like to remove the feeding, but I have not yet figured out how to do it in the dark.
So we spent almost a month together. The Grushinsky festival is on the nose and you will have to leave the pretty family for a while. Not the fact that they will not scatter in a week or two. Let's see!
Good afternoon friends.
Today I want to tell you about my encounters with owls. Earlier, when I just switched from hunting to photography, I tried to shoot mainly hunting objects - black grouse, hazel grouse, fox. Probably because I knew better what I tried to hunt before. Then came the realization that it was necessary to expand the list of species, to study animals and birds.
I, like many photo hunters, was also attracted by large birds - black grouse, diurnal predators, and, of course, owls. I did not meet the latter so often - sometimes during hunting trips, sometimes during forays into the forest for mushrooms and berries. Several times I saw the Long-eared and Short-eared Owls, more often the Great Owl. I saw the Great Owl only once, and then from afar, I only heard the Tawny Owl. But then I did not distinguish them by voice and by appearance– for me they were all just owls. Now it became interesting for me to study owls, to figure out who is who, which of the owls lives where and how they scream. Yes, and much more.
It all started last year. Having seen enough photos of the Red Book scops owl from familiar photographers and listening to how she screams, I suddenly remembered that I had seen and heard this little scops owl a few years ago not far from Bor. Since the current period for owls has long passed, and it was June in the yard, I decided to look for a long-eared owl and splyushka, or rather, their broods. At this time, these owls are easier to find than the rest.
I didn’t find Splyushka in those places where I saw it several years ago, but suddenly my friend called me and said that literally a brood of Splyushka lives near my village. He turned on the speakerphone, and I distinctly heard through the loudspeaker the Red Book scoop singing in the night.
“That’s it, we have to go!” I decided. But as usual, things dragged on, and I got ready to shoot splices only a week later. Unfortunately, the brood migrated somewhere and fell silent, and long-eared owls settled near this place. In fact, they probably lived there. On this trip, I did not find and did not hear scops, but I found this very brood of long-eared owls. Then I first tried night shooting with a flashlight, heard enough how the chicks of the long-eared owl scream, and how their mother calls to them. The result of this trip was one single photo of not the best quality - all the rest went to the trash. As it turned out, my headlamp was not strong enough for the camera to autofocus, so I had to shoot in manual mode. It turned out a lot of marriage, but the main thing is that I watched a brood of long-eared owls and made some useful conclusions for myself.
In the same autumn, I hung them for the Ural Owl not far from the village, and hung up two more buckets for the long-eared owls. For these purposes, I had to purchase dart-climbing peaks and master the science of climbing trees. Then my friend ornithologist Alexei Levashkin had already briefly talked about owls, and I already knew that the best way to shoot was to attract owls to artificial nests. I was also told when is the best time to spot owls, and I looked forward to spring.
Owl stories. Part one.
Unfortunately, the spring in 2017 turned out to be cold. During the whole spring of owls, I only twice heard a boreal owl in different places. I never saw a single owl. In May I checked my duplons and they were all empty. But I did not despair - I had plans to search for scops and long-eared owls. In parallel, I found an interesting one and began to study the feathered "cats of the night."
I found a brood of long-eared owls unexpectedly at the end of May. My wife and daughter and I went to a lake outside the city, and when we were leaving home at dusk, I heard an unexpectedly familiar squeak in the planting of larches and pines. My daughter and I went to the sound and found a tree from which a squeak was heard, but we did not manage to see the owlet itself.
The next night I went to shoot. When I drove up to the lake, I already heard the owls from the car. This time it was two people who called. They fell silent as they approached the tree. I turned on the flashlight, and after a five-minute search, I was able to find both babies in a tree. One sat in dense branches, but the second settled on a branch in a clean place - and it turned out to be photographed.
After that, I went two more times to look at the owls during the day, showed them to my daughter and mother-in-law and managed to see the mother owl. The “mother” turned out to be extremely cautious, she didn’t let people close and immediately flew away. It was a little more annoying that there were crow's nests nearby (by the way, the eared owl's nest itself was located on a pine tree in an old crow's nest). When I came to check the owls for the third time, I did not find them, but only a pile of feathers under the trees where the owlets were sitting. I then thought that the owls were victims of crows. But, as I was later told, these were crow feathers. And a few days later I found my owls closer to the road - they grew up great and were already flying with might and main in the lake area.
Soon I got out to take pictures of these owls and explore the area near the city - to look for other broods of eared owls and scops. On this trip, I managed to find a lone "ushan" on the edge of the city, which did not let me take a photo shot, and watch the Short-eared Owl hunting in the fields. I did not find Splyushka in promising places, so I again returned to the lake outside the city to take pictures of my owlets. It was already dark, and the owlets were letting in much closer than at dusk. I managed to make a big series, to see a mother with a mouse in her paws. In general, the trip was a success.
Owl stories. Part two.
My friend Mikhail Mukhortov and I had been planning to go somewhere together to shoot for a long time, but somehow everything did not work out. Either business, then work, then some other problems, and we live in different cities - I am on Bor, Mishka is in Nizhny. Finally, on Wednesday, June 21, all the affairs and problems suddenly disappeared, and we decided to go on a night photo hunt - to shoot owlets and look for more long-eared owls and scops.
At the beginning of the tenth evening, I had already moved out by the lake, where the eared ones lived. Misha was already waiting for me there. We get out of the car, listen - silence, only the wind rustles in the crowns.
- Didn't you hear? I ask Mishka.
- Nope. Let's try to play the phonogram and walk around the district.
We turn on the soundtrack of the voice on the phone, listen. The wind is quite strong, "blows off" all the sounds. Moreover, as luck would have it, the recording is quite quiet. After several attempts, we decide to make a circle around the territory adjacent to the lake. Let's go, chatting about photography and life, at the same time we turn on the recording of the voice of long-eared owl chicks. Finally, at the edge of the pine plantation, we hear the long-awaited squeak. We turn to the sound, carefully approaching the source. And here he is - he sees a willow on a branch, looks at us. I turn on the flashlight, and Misha starts filming. Half a minute later, the second one sits down to the first owlet, and they begin to squat and dance amusingly on a branch. A cool shot would have turned out, but it’s twilight outside, the light is neither, and even a flashlight is now powerless. The owlets fly a little further, and again sit on the bough. We carefully approach and try to shoot, at the same time we observe amazing birds.
The shutter of Mishka's camera is working, I don't take out my "reflex camera" yet, but just watch. I have already filmed these “guys”, now I want to look at them not through the video finder, but just like that. When the owlets once again fly over, we decide not to disturb them anymore, but to ride towards the village of Kerzhenets and listen to the owls there. I leave my car with my mother, and we drive in Mishkin's Nissan to look for owls.
Outside the city - peace and quiet. The wind has died down, a cool summer night hangs over the fields and copses. There are very few mosquitoes - this is only to our advantage. We stop where the pine massif ends, and the field goes into the distance, into the darkness. Here we go from the car to the copse, listening to the silence of the night. Behind the grove in the village, a dog barks; I alternately play a recording of the voice of a long-eared owl and a scops owl. Next to these two tracks, I have a recording of the voice of an eagle owl, and when I forget a little, the recording jumps, and the neighborhood announces a loud “uuu-uuuuu”. We laugh and keep listening. But the owls do not answer us, and we return to the car and drive on.
The owl walk continues. As we pass a small village, we hear a familiar squeak from the roadside bushes. The window is ajar, it looks like the sound came from the street. The bear abruptly slows down and listens.
- Did you turn on the recording? Misha asks.
“No,” I say. - Nothing turned on. Let's listen.
Let's listen. And suddenly we clearly hear in the silence the squeak of a fledgling of an eared owl. Found another one!
- Let's go shoot!
- Let's go to!
We hurriedly get out of the car, taking photographic equipment, a flashlight and speakers. The owlet is calling us with a ringing squeak to the birch forest near the road. We get down from the road embankment, turn on the lantern. And here is our "friend" - sitting low, on a pine branch, looking at us with red eyes. I highlight, Misha shoots. Then I take out my photographic equipment, and my friend and I change roles. A few frames - a step towards the owlet, another series - one more step. This one, not so shy, looks at us trustingly and becomes alert only when I make some sharp sound so that the bird turns to the photographer “face”.
We shoot and highlight in turn. The owlet is already close - it almost completely fits into the frame. Suddenly, a dull familiar sound is heard from the side.
Do you hear? Mishka asks me. - Also an owl?
— Aha! I nod. Looks like Mom has arrived.
I immediately remember how Gena Kolotin and I discussed photographing long-eared owls. I remember how Gena said that it would be great to capture the moment of transferring food from the mother to the chick. The mother owl is spinning nearby - now, it seems, it flew even closer, sat down somewhere near the road and now gives a voice from there. We continue to shoot the owlet - now he has turned his back to us and looks back at the disturbers. My camera flash is choking, taking more and more time to charge. You have to wait a few seconds to take another shot.
And suddenly another owl appears in sight - larger than our baby. She sits down on a branch next to an owlet, passes the mouse to him, and disappears into the night.
- Take it off! - Mishka whispers, but, as luck would have it, my flash is reloading. I look at the branch - our owlet is sitting alone again, only now with a mouse in its beak.
- Stripped off? - asks Mishka
- I didn't, damn it! I say. - The flash failed.
“And I didn’t have time,” the comrade answers, and together we laugh at our failure. A long-eared owl chick flies into the thick of foliage - it looks like it wants to dine in peace. We try to look for him for some time, but then we decide to leave him alone and go on.
And again - night roads, stops and attempts to make a long-eared owl or spryushka respond to the voice. But while the night does not betray its mysterious inhabitants. We stop at Misha's dacha and drive further - towards the village of Kerzhenets. In the headlights, a hare jumps out onto the road - first it sits on the asphalt, but then, as if after changing its mind, it runs into the field. We jump out with cameras, shine with lanterns - in vain. Go and find now the oblique at night in the field. The road is deserted, and only sometimes a bright bead flashes on the asphalt in the dusk - this is a nightjar sitting down to rest right on the asphalt. We drive up to them in a car almost close, we watch amazing night birds from the passenger compartment. And then we go further.
Silence on the lake. Fog hangs over the water, it is fabulously beautiful here - even paint pictures. Only the moon is not enough for full atmosphere. The night has long since broken, turned to dawn. But today should be the shortest night. An amazing phenomenon - at sunset it is still a little light from the departed luminary, and the first glimpses of the morning dawn are already beginning to illuminate the sunrise. I noticed a long time ago that such night walks in nature are very bright and are remembered for a lifetime. Perhaps we need to get out more often like this - it will later be something to remember in retirement
Somewhere near the dam the water rustles, sometimes night birds give a voice. Do not hear owls. We decide to ride a little more and come back. The time is twenty minutes to two, and Mishka and I are starting to slowly “stick”. Having examined the last promising place, we decide to go towards the house. Fatigue slowly makes itself felt. Now we are more silent - we think about the upcoming short sleep and rest. But each of us gained impressions for at least a few months in advance. Nightjars shine on the pavement - it turns out that there are a great many of them here. The dawn comes from behind the forest. Less than four hours to get up for work. Tomorrow I will nod off at the computer in the office. Yes, and don't care. It's been a great walk! And this is the most important thing!
In many ways, it looks like a cat - it is subject to its mood, it sleeps at any convenient opportunity. Peaceful, master of unusual photos and a big fan of food!
A real choleric, but behind his formidable appearance and feigned discontent hides a sensitive and vulnerable soul. Many may think that his name is associated with the cartoon "Rick and Morty", but it is not. Morty is named after Voldemort from Harry Potter. Not just Mort, but Morty. We are better.
- steals other mice while feeding
- can transform beyond recognition
- hisses charmingly to appear scarier
Year of birth: 2016
Scientific information about long-eared owls
Systematics
Russian name - eared owl
Latin name – Asio otus
English name – Long-eared owl
Detachment - owls
Family - owls or real owls
The long-eared owl is one of the most widespread species of owls. It got its name because of the tufts of feathers on its head, which it can raise, lower, or press tightly against its head. These "ears" are not organs of hearing, although, of course, they help the owl to pick up all the sounds from environment. The real ears of an owl are two large, asymmetrically located holes on the sides of the head.
Outwardly, the long-eared owl is a bit like a small owl, for which people who are not versed in ornithology often take it.
conservation status
The long-eared owl is a common, widespread species and its existence in nature is currently not a matter of concern.
View and person
Long-eared owls usually do not cause negative emotions in humans. On the contrary, owls, including eared ones, are called wise, they are often depicted sitting on stacks of old tomes or in professorial robes and hats with a tassel. And in folk tales wise owls protect the master's goods from plunderers - mice and rats. It has long been known that where there are owls, there are no mice.
Long-eared owls are quite tolerant of the presence of a person. Until recently, they willingly settled on the outskirts of large cities and even in city parks. But a large number of crows in the cities forced the owls to leave these places, since a collision with a flock of crows during the day can end in death for an owl.
Spreading
The long-eared owl is distributed throughout Eurasia from the Atlantic to the Pacific, in North America and northern Africa. Inhabits forests of various types, but most often coniferous, but reluctantly settles in the depths of forests. Necessary condition for normal owl hunting is the presence of open places - edges, clearings or clearings.
In most of their range, long-eared owls are migratory, however, they do not make long-distance flights. For example, European individuals fly to winter in North Africa. In the southernmost parts of the range, long-eared owls make short-distance migrations in winter, and sometimes, in warm winters, they may not fly anywhere at all. And, nevertheless, this is the only species of owls in our fauna that is migratory.
Appearance
The long-eared owl is a medium-sized bird, its body length is from 31 to 37 cm, its wingspan is from 86 to 98 cm, and its weight is 250-300 g. Females and males do not differ from each other in color or size.
The plumage of the back of these owls is grayish-brown, the belly is reddish with distinct dark longitudinal and transverse stripes. The facial disc is well developed and has large orange eyes. The feathers that form the ears can reach 6 cm in length. Paws are feathered to the very claws.
Feeding and feeding behavior
The basis of the food of the long-eared owl is made up of mouse-like rodents - mice and voles, but it also catches larger prey, such as rats. It also catches shrews, but they make up no more than 1% in the owl's diet. Less often, small passerine birds become its prey, and their number increases during autumn migrations. Long-eared owls often bring insects, especially large beetles, to feed their chicks.
Long-eared owls usually hunt in open areas (clearings, clearings, fields), silently and quickly flying around their hunting grounds. They hunt only at night or in the late twilight.
Activity
All day long, the long-eared owl sleeps, sitting on a branch, stretched out and clinging to the tree trunk. It is almost impossible to notice her in this position. An owl becomes active only in the dark, silently flying out to open places where they hunt.
Vocalization
In the spring, males of long-eared owls are quite talkative, at night you can hear their long drawn-out frequent “uh-uh”. But besides this, owls make other sounds (a jerky cry, a whistle, a thin whine). Outside of the breeding season, adult long-eared owls are rather silent. Long-eared owl chicks are very noisy, loudly begging for food from their parents.
social behavior
During the nesting period, long-eared owls live in pairs, but during autumn and winter migrations, unlike other species of owls, they gather in groups of 5-10 to 50 individuals. During the day they silently sit in dense bushes, in the canopy of trees or on the ground, closely clinging to each other, and with the onset of twilight they scatter to hunt. In the morning the whole company gathers again at the same place.
Reproduction and parenting behavior
Long-eared owls start breeding early enough. In March, in the forest you can already hear the mating "hooting" of males. But the current of long-eared owls is not only in the supply of sound signals. It is also a zigzag flight from tree to tree, accompanied by a peculiar flapping of wings. Sometimes in the spring you can hear the voices of 2 current males at the same time, as if “talking” to each other.
For nesting, long-eared owls choose the nests of other birds, they do not build their own. Most often these are old nests of crows, magpies, rooks. However, it is not uncommon for owls to take away new nests from crows. Nests are usually located quite high - up to 25 m above the ground, but can be at a height of only 2-4 m. Most often, long-eared owls prefer coniferous trees, and nests are located close to the trunk. On deciduous trees, owls sometimes choose magpie nests, while “rebuilding” them somewhat, namely, expanding the notch and dismantling the roof (magpies have a round nest with a roof). Owls can also occupy old nests of birds of prey (buzzard, honey buzzard, kite), and can occasionally settle in hollows. There are cases when owls used the same nest for 2 years.
In the southern parts of the range, clutches of the long-eared owl appear already at the end of March, in the middle lane - in April. In "mouse" years, long-eared owls can nest twice in one season. A full clutch of a long-eared owl contains 4-5 eggs, but it can be up to 9. The eggs are white, rounded; a newly laid egg weighs 27-29 g. Eggs are laid at intervals of one night, but the female begins to incubate immediately after laying the first egg. The incubation period lasts 25-28 days, but, apparently, different periods of incubation are established for different eggs. Thus, from eggs laid at intervals of several days, the chicks hatch at the same time. Only the female incubates the clutch, which begins to fly out to hunt only when the older chick is 9-10 days old. Until this time, the male obtains food for both the female and the chicks. A newly hatched owlet is covered with white down, with closed eyes and ear holes; it weighs about 20 g. On the fifth day, the weight of the owlet doubles, and the eyes open.
On the 24-25th day, the growth of the chicks ends, but they are still in the nest. Only a week later, having barely learned to flit from branch to branch, they leave the nest. They can fly freely only for 50-55 days.
AT last days before departure, parents feed the fledglings especially intensively (fledglings are chicks that have already left the nest, but are still dependent on their parents). In one night, owls manage to bring 12-15 voles, i.e. at least 200 g of food. At the same time, the fledglings constantly ask for food, announcing the surroundings with a loud hoarse squeak. In general, eared owl chicks scream much more often than owl chicks.
Natural waste in long-eared owl nests can be quite large. Usually 2-3 eggs turn out to be talkers (not fertilized) or with a dead embryo. Some chicks die in the first days of life. As a result, 2-3 chicks from the brood survive to the age of one month. In “lean” years for mice, long-eared owls may not nest at all or lay small clutches.
Lifespan
The average life expectancy of a long-eared owl in nature is 10-11 years, however, there is a unique case when, according to ringing data, the age of a long-eared owl was 27 years and 9 months.
One day at the end of May, during a traditional evening walk through the garden community, we heard characteristic whistles, which are usually interpreted as "sleep, sleep ...". We knew that owls were not uncommon in the area, but try to make out them in the coming dusk!
Science and life // Illustrations
The youngest owlet just got out of the nest. At the bottom right is a mouse brought by adults for chicks.
The younger one took his place on the branch next to the older one. The "ears" are visible.
Owl mom.
This time, however, it was different. A casual glance at a lonely standing dried spruce unexpectedly revealed a large dark spot on one of the branches. We aimed binoculars and were able to identify the long-eared owl (Asio otus). Actually, it was not difficult: a sitting bird can be distinguished from all other owls of similar size by long feather "ears". "Ears" in quotation marks are not taken by chance: these are not real auricles (which birds do not have), but simply feathers sticking out vertically. The eagle owl also has similar "ears", but our owl was clearly smaller than it in size, and the owl's "song" - a powerful bass "UuuhU" - did not at all resemble our squeak. Attentive rummaging with the “armed” eye of the branches of the same spruce made it possible to find a nest. It was not located very high and looked sloppy, which, however, is explained by the fact that eared owls themselves do not build nests, but prefer to occupy the old dwellings of magpies or crows.
Having studied over the next week the literature available to us, we could already foresee what lay ahead of us. Newborn owlets are white, then their down becomes light gray, a black “mask” appears on the facial disc and “ears” are already visible. At the age of one month, the chicks leave the nest, sitting in neighboring trees. As it is written in the books, in case of danger, the owls freeze or, having closed their eyes, stretch out and become like a tree knot.
Owls are perfectly adapted to fulfill their main task - to hunt small rodents at night. Their huge pupils capture a lot of light. Light-sensitive rods predominate in the retina, thanks to which owls see in almost zero light. The eyes of a long-eared owl can see a mouse at a light level equivalent to a single candle in a football stadium. This is facilitated by the location of the eyes, which is different from most birds (on the sides of the head), but similar to the human (on the face). True, it led to the fact that the owls practically lost the ability to move their eyes and to change the field of view they need to rotate their heads. An owl has 14 cervical vertebrae (twice as many as mammals), thanks to which its head can turn 270 degrees.
However, the eyes are half the battle: owls have amazingly acute hearing. The flattened plumage surrounding the auditory openings form horns that direct sound waves to the ears, two large vertical slits on the sides of the skull. Owls can change the size of crevices. All this allows them to very accurately calculate the location of the victim, estimating the tiny difference in time it takes for the rustle of a mouse movement to reach the left and right ears.
In addition to unusual hearing and vision, evolution has given owls another unique ability - silent flight. The paws and body of these birds are covered with dense downy plumage; the flight feathers are rounded at the ends and curl towards the body to soften the flow of air. Because of this, owls often seem larger than they really are: a long-eared owl is the size of a dove, its wingspan reaches 90 cm, and its weight is no more than 400 g (like a large orange).
A week after meeting the owl, we noticed an owlet in the nest. The “mask” had already begun to appear in front of the eyes, and the “ears” were guessed only by two small “bumps” on the forehead in the right places. The size of the nest suggested that there would hardly be enough room for one more chick, but we were wrong: a week later, three owls were sitting on the branches of a dried spruce. Meanwhile, squeaks continued from the nest. Before our eyes, the fourth one was getting out of there.
It was an entertaining sight! At first, the youngest sat next to his home, turned around, turned around, looked around, and then began to climb higher, to his brothers and sisters. Apparently, he did this in order to have a better chance of being noticed by his parents (otherwise they would suddenly forget in the nest?). How did he manage to do this without being able to fly yet? If we had not seen everything with our own eyes, we would never have believed it. Clinging to the branches and trunk with all parts of the body, he rather quickly climbed higher and higher until he reached the branch where his older brother (or sister) was already sitting. A short fight between relatives - and the youngest gets the right to occupy the same branch. In the meantime, the squeaks of the children have reached their goal: one of the older owls has returned (usually the male feeds the brood, but when the chicks grow up, the parents hunt together), and one of the chicks was lucky to get a little parental attention. At the same time, we did not notice any prey in the beak. The rest of the children were obviously agitated, tossing and turning on their perches, flapping their wings, but to no avail. Subsequently, one of the neighbors in the dacha said that he saw how, already in the dark, owls brought mice to the chicks.
The family of owls has become a local landmark. It remained to be hoped that the chicks would not suffer the fate of those that were seen on the territory of our garden partnership several years ago. Then, according to the stories, they were shot down by boys from an air gun purely out of pampering.
A week later, we found a dried spruce with a completely empty nest. However, at dusk, a characteristic squeak was heard: it means that everything is in order with the owlets. Indeed, we soon found them: one - in the branches of a native tree, the other - on the top of a spruce in the neighborhood, the rest - in apple trees nearby. A mother owl was also found: she took a fancy to a high pole of an incomprehensible purpose and sat on it, not hiding at all. Suddenly, another owl flew out of the forest (probably dad), and the owlet on a dried spruce (judging by its downy outfit, it was the youngest) got something for dinner. The mother owl now and then silently flew from one tree to another and began to “bark”. Maybe she urged her husband to return with prey as soon as possible? We noted that at least one chick in the apple trees has already acquired adult plumage. He must have been able to fly.
After another week, we did not manage to see anyone, but familiar cries were heard from the edge of the nearby forest. This year, the breeding of offspring in owls ended successfully.
Finally, I would like to warn readers against excessively close attention to the nest of owls, if you come across it. You can not only prevent parents from hatching chicks, but also seriously suffer. These predator birds behave quite boldly and are not limited to screaming, beak clicks or threatening movements. Sometimes they swoop down on people and strike with their claws in the back or head.