DFW Urban Wildlife

NOTE: This observation is a continuation of a previous post. The earlier article can be found here: Great Horned Owl – VCDB Nests Update 9

Well, I finally got the good weather I had been hoping would coincide with a trip out to photograph the VCDB owl nests. The temperatures were warm, the sky was blue, and the morning light was just right for photographing the owlets.

The only problem was that the owlets were not there. The south nest was empty—the owlets had fledged. The north nest was also empty, but things were more complicated there. This nest seemed to be in a bit of disarray, like it had been damaged somehow.

When I took a closer look at the pictures from this session, I noticed something I didn’t catch during my brief morning visit. There in the tree, just below and to the right of the nest, was the carcass of a large bird—almost certainly one of the owlets. There had been a tragedy at this nest.

It is hard to say what happened here. A couple of possibilities I can think of are weather and predation. Earlier in the week some storms rolled through, but they were not particularly severe. I’ve also heard reports that a Red-tailed Hawk had been harassing this nest. Red-tailed Hawks and Great Horned Owls can be bitter rivals, and are said to kill each other during some confrontations. The owlets would have been particularly vulnerable.

Observation Details

Related Posts:

Great Horned Owl – VCDB Nest Great Horned Owl – Two Nests in the VCDB Great Horned Owl – VCDB Nests Update 1 Great Horned Owl – VCDB Nests Update 3 Red-eared Slider – Deceased