Barn Owl webcam - Molly & McGee

[Kris G.]

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/the-owl-box

[Donna]

She's a beauty. Owls are so cool. Thanks

[Donna]

OH and LOVE the names too..Molly & McGee...

[Kris G.]

I loved the names too and it says that it appears she's a first-time mom.  And LOTS of eggs-6!!

[Donna]

SAN MARCOS — Any day now, Molly’s eggs are going to start hatching, to the delight of the tens of thousands of people worldwide who have followed the barn owl and her mate McGee on a 24/7 video stream from a home in San Marcos.

Since the owls took up residence in January in an owl box in Carlos and Donna Royal’s backyard, the viewers have witnessed the courtship and the laying of six eggs and now anticipate the hatchlings like expectant relatives in a waiting room. “This has turned into so much fun,� Carlos said.

He calls Molly “the world’s most famous owl.�

She has her own Facebook and Twitter accounts, and in a little more than a month more than 100,000 viewers visited the owl box. Royal said he expects the numbers to rise even more after the eggs hatch.

The couple live on an acre off Twin Oaks Road and put up the owl box because they like bird watching. “We waited and waited and waited two years for owls to show up,� he said.

The Royals did not know that their box had attracted a pair of owls until the storms in January blew down their fence near where the box sits on a steel pole, 15 feet in the air. Their neighbor asked if they had heard the owls screeching during the storm.

Royal decided to place a camera outside the owl box so as not to disturb Molly and hooked it up to their television. When he decided to do some live streaming, he called his grandson Austin Faure, 17, a student at High Tech High in San Marcos, for help.

Then Royal added an infrared camera so he could stream at night. Royal was having so much fun with it, he e-mailed a friend and invited him to go to the site to see Molly and McGee.

“They must have sent it to their friends, and the next thing I know, we have 100 people at a time viewing the owl box,� he said.

The owls house sits on a 15 foot pole in the backyard.

[Kris G.]

One Owlet has hatched-named Max.

[Wing Goose]

What a cutie Max is !!
         Lola
         

[Donna]

Local Barn Owl Beats Puppies And Pandas To Become Internet Superstar

March 23, 2010

Last month, a couple in San Marcos set up an owl house for an adorable barn owl named Molly who proceeded to lay six eggs. Carlos and Donna Royal installed a video camera in the house that broadcasts a live, 24-hour web feed of Molly and her hatchlings.

Since that time, one egg has hatched and a little pink owlet (named Max) now shares the owl house, which looks like a little wooden box. Max spends most of his time trying to lift his tiny fuzzy head. It's really hard when you don't have neck muscles.

Carlos and Donna have become owl experts. They hold web chats and Carlos fields general questions about barn owls. The live stream has close to 2 million views. Elementary schools are watching and reportedly, so are the troops.

Last night, those watching held an impromptu roll call announcing where they were from in the chat feature. Cities from all over the US were represented, as was Japan, the Netherlands, Australia, Ireland...it just kept going. I'll admit, I was among them. The whole thing is pretty addictive.

I will say, things get all kinda crazy in that owl house at night. A male owl named McGee visits for some shrieking and mounting, leaves immediately, then returns minutes later with some kind of rodent gift for Molly. Total playa! At one point Molly actually left the house, and viewers were able to get a good look at Max as he tried to stumble over the other eggs after his mother. It was wild kingdom adorable.

A second egg has hatched!

[Aafke]

Kris, I love them, I just looked for a short time and saw owlets, wow
The fluffy thing in the beak of the owl is a prey, it looked like a rabbit orso

[Donna]

A new baby appeared Tuesday night for San Marcos Internet celebrity Molly the Barn owl.

Thousands of people around the world have been glued to their computer monitors recently watching the owl that's moved into the barn of San Marcos residents Carlos and Donna Royal, the North County Times reported.

The Royals are broadcasting Molly's nest 24/7 as she takes care of five eggs. Right after the second egg hatched just before 7 p.m. Tuesday, Molly shielded the owlet from view, the paper reported.

In the meantime, viewers can watch Molly as she sits on her nest, getting up every 15 minutes to roll each egg and shift her position to make sure they stay equally warm.
 
As word about the live feed has spread, the number of people who have logged on has jumped to more than 360,000. Thousands are also following Molly on the social networking sites Facebook and Twitter and "her" online blog.

[Aafke]

I think a Barn Owl is such a special and strange bird.
I really like this webcam.

[Kris G.]

I think a Barn Owl is such a special and strange bird.
I really like this webcam.

I do too, Aafke. 

[Kris G.]

Max is the first-born, Pattison was 2nd and at 3:11 PM, Austin hatched!

                                             

[Donna]

Max is the first-born, Pattison was 2nd and at 3:11 PM, Austin hatched!

                                             

  the names! Thanks Kris!   I hear a mourning dove...

[Donna]

Here's the darlings