Xcel energy Owl has laid 1st egg

[Donna]

http://birdcam.xcelenergy.com/owl.html

The great  horned owl has laid first egg on Feb 11.

How nice...hope all goes well.

 

[Bird Crazy]

Cool, I didn't know they would use a nest box.

[Aafke]

Yesterday I saw the second egg!
greetings Aafke

[Aafke]

3 eggs!!!!

[Aafke]

In the last 24 hours, the female left the nestbox twice, one time for 4 minutes and one time for 14 minutes.
It's nice to see the male so close to the nest, it's a real big boy.
greetings Aafke

[Aafke]

This night, the female left the eggs for a long time.
She left at 1.26
And came back at 4.01
In the mean time the male came inside at 3.43 and stayed inside for a few minutes.
greetings Aafke

[AlisonL]

Late in the evening of February 24, Snowflake returned to the nest with her face covered with something dark, which appeared to be blood. She seemed somewhat dazed and confused; her eyes were almost closed. She did incubate the eggs for a short time, but has now ceased to incubate.

From Dave Madonna, who is at the Valmont Plant, and who does a great job of watching over the owls:

Thanks for your support and concern for the Valmont GHO's.  The adult female is currently perched outside the nest just out of the camera's view.  Observing her with binoculars from about 100 yards away, she appears to have dried blood on her face.  The adult male is roosting in a favorite spot directly below the nest and he appears to be healthy. There has been a third GHO, probably female based on size, in the immediate area for over a week.  I am speculating that the nesting female got into a territorial fight with the intruder last night.  There has been no sign of the third owl today.  Hopefully, the female's injuries are superficial and she will recover quickly. 

GHO's have been nesting at the Valmont power plant for over 30 years.  In the 13 years I have been watching them, only 1 nest has failed, although there has been plenty of excitement.  They are  remarkably adaptable.  The nest cameras give us incredible insight into the challenges they face.  Their three eggs are almost certainly nonviable after being exposed for so long.   They may possibly lay a second clutch in two weeks or so like they did several years ago.   

Be assured that we are keeping a close watch on the owls. I will submit another post if anything significant occurs here. Thanks again for your support.

Dave Madonna

I hope that Snowflake will recover from her injuries quickly, and that she and Dan will be able to lay a second clutch. She looked a little better today.

         

[Aafke]

Alison, thanks for this sad information.
greetings Aafke

[Donna]

Alison, thanks for this sad information.
greetings Aafke

Yes, very sad, I was wondering why she was off the eggs more than she was on.