Have you ever wondered what the inside of a Great Gray Owl nest looks like? So have we - however, these nests are often far too high for us to peek into (some of the Great Gray Owl nests ORI has located have been 80 feet high in a tree!).
Luckily, with the use of aerial photography, ORI has captured some photos of the inside of old Great Gray Owl nests after the adults and young had all departed the area. This way, we can get a better idea of what the owls are looking for in a nest site. Enjoy this unique view!
Looks cozy - how long do owls use a nest for? Do they return back to a nest made in a previous season, or do they make a new nest each year like some birds?
Excellent question, and I hope I can answer that to your satisfaction, because this is one of those questions where the answer is: it depends.
I found this article and here’s the most relevant snippet:
There’s a lot of good insight in that article, about the Great Horned specifically, but all owls reuse nests.
Red Tailed Hawk nests are a popular choice for the larger owls since they’re about the same size.
This lucky owl has taken over a bald eagle nest. This one looks very sturdy.
This one just looks uncomfortable for the adults! I hope there is more headroom than there appears.
The owls will do some light site prep and initial maintenance, but home building and repair is not a skill they possess.
This is again another reason we need to preserve OLD forests. The more trees we cut down with holes, crevices, and old nests, the less places these owls have to go. They can do their daily roosting wherever they want, but to reproduce, they need an existing place to move into.
As always, appreciate your comment!! Very interesting to learn that there are (in rare cases) nests that last up to a decade. That’s an impressive nest
Yup, the ones in the initial post look good, but they look exposed to weather and with thinner bedding that will break down in the rain and sun.
That eagle nest though is made of decently thick sticks, and a good amount of them, so that one may last a while.
I’m glad you asked the question!
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