Hi to all,
As some might recall we have been watching a P_owl family for a couple of years.
The mother raised two chicks on her own but disappeared (with the owlets) in early March soon after another P_owl took up residence in the same area.
We think the new owl is a female about 2 years old (but we are not certain).
It has been pretty much alone ever since then woohooing its little heart out most nights.
A couple of days ago a second owl (which we are guessing is a young male) turned up and began roosting close to the resident owl. They showed some signs of being about to mate but we think the new owl doesn't really know what to do and each night they eventually fly away in separate directions.
As the breeding season is pretty much at an end it will be interesting to see how (or if) this romance progresses.
Cheers,
Antonia
You got some great poses Antonia.
Dave
Sydney
https://www.flickr.com/photos/12185187@N00/
I love it when you post, it's always interesting and there are quality photographs.
What makes you think it's a female Antonia?
PS. Since your last post I have actually exchanged, "eye contact" with a "P_owl " as you call them. Not sure I made a big impression. He/she went to sleep!
Samford Valley Qld.
Hi Dave,
We are looking forward to when you post some photos of the chicks from the pair you are watching.
Hi Reflex,
I am glad you finally got to see a P_owl... they have become a big part of our lives.
Yes, some days we are lucky to see them open one eye or even acknowledge our presence.
But other days they seem more alert....particularly if they are being bothered by Currawongs.
We are guessing the resident owl is a female as it appears to have chased off the original mum,
whereas a male might have paired up with it. As well, we are inclined to think that the females have a
slightly rounder body shape and less pronounced chevrons on the chest. In our (very limited) experience
the females also have a less fierce way of looking at you.
The guy in the photos was very alert, headbobbing and responding to every sound and movement.
His attempts at woohooing left a lot to be desired.
Just on dark...with a beautiful rising full moon...the female seemed to be encouraging him to mate with her.
However after showing great interest for 10 minutes he simply flew off.
Perhaps his wooing was as bad as his woohooing?
Cheers,
A.
Always great to hear the updates & see the pics of the P_Owls, Antonia.
I was with Reflex when we saw the 1st one.
Just something about them that is very awe inspiring.
Lovely clarity in all of those photos, especially like the 3rd one with the yawn and wing stretch at the same time. It must be so exciting to be able to moniter these magnificent owls
Ryu
Canberra
Aiming for DSLR-quality shots with a bridge camera
Great set of photo's and always a great post to go with it as usual. Thanks for sharing
Link to my Flickr Account
http://www.flickr.com/photos/14869355@N07/
Wow great story and lovely photos too!
Thanks for sharing
Regards
Happy Birding!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/138588528@N02/
Many thanks Devster, HelloBirdy, vas and Wollemi.
The new male, who we think is just one year old, doesn't seem to know what to do with a lady.
After a few failed attempts at romance the female was alone yesterday.
At dusk she flew to the top of the tallest tree and woohooed loudly, mournfully and for a very long time.
But there was no response.
So we were very surprised to find them this morning, both roosting side by side, high up in a figtree.
So we live in hope.
Cheers, Antonia
PS The new male is on the left of the photo
Some guys got it, some guys don't
At least he is sticking around, hopefully he figures it out sooner or later.
At what age can they successfully mate normally?
They should be able to breed as soon as they can find a mate after fledging. Probably less than a year old. If they really wanted to.
Thanks Devster and Akos.
Akos, do you have any references you can point us to as we have often heard two years is the minimum?
In this case we think the female is two and the male has just turned one.
Anyway tonight was the night!
Just after 5:30 pm the two owls flew down to a lower branch and nature took its course.
It all took seven seconds compared to the three seconds we have seen between older owls.
We videoed using only available light so as not to disturb their romance but hopefully we can get some better photos in time.
Cheers,
A.
Great work Antonia and thank you for the effort you are putting in to bring this to us.
Will be watching with baited breath, haven't seen these birds but imagine that when I do i will be amazed
at a real life encounter. Birds of prey just seem to get the heart pumping
Thanks Rick N. They are very interesting to watch.
Unfortunately once you start looking at them it is very hard to stop!
Hi Akos, we did a bit of googling and found this...
6.1 Life historyPowerful Owl The Powerful Owl lives as monogamous, sedentary life-long pairs in large permanent home ranges.The social unit is an adult pair and 1-2 dependent young. Age at first breeding is 2 years in captivity, unknown in the wild but probably 3 or 4 years. Approved Recovery Plan for Large Forest Owls 2006NSW Department of Environment and Conservation." I know you have good connections to owl experts so they might have more recent references? Cheers,