I arrived later than usual, having been tied up photographing Lola.  The male was just about to leave the cavity and I just got a few shots before he did.  He was taking out the trash again. I’m not sure what it was this time.

The female soon appeared and didn’t take long to leave.  Tonight, I followed her, rather than watching for signs of nestlings.  She made lots of calls in front of the nest and to the side of the nest.  It seems as though she is encouraging the nestlings to come out of the nest.  I wonder what happens after we leave!

It was a nice evening.  Not as warm as yesterday, but not too cold.  Both adults traded places in the cavity before flying out.  At least two nestlings are in the cavity.

One of the owls “barked” loudly at a Towhee just before fly out, moving up and down frantically.

After fly out, the mother called for a great deal of time from just in front of the cavity.  I think she may be enticing the children to fledge or at least explore the cavity’s edge, but I can’t be sure.

The next two weeks should be lots of fun after all of our waiting.

After fly out, we got to see and hear some fun activity.

The owls continued their campaign against the raccoons nearby.  We got to see the male make ten passes at a raccoon as it made its way down a tree close to the nest cavity.

The nest cavity clearly has nestlings.  We got to clearer pictures of young ones tonight.  Soon their should be fledglings.

It was a warm evening.  Before fly out, the female posed for pictures while it was still light.  The male must be sleeping elsewhere, but we can’t find his roost.

What did we see tonight?

• The male might be sleeping somewhere else again, but we haven’t figured this out yet.
• The female came out and spent a great deal of time outside the cavity.
• She has been using a new call, that seems to be an alarm cry.  It was used before and after the male owl attacked a raccoon.
• We may have had a nestling sighting.
• The nest has lots of insects.

I’ve been away for almost a week.  I’ve come back to what may be the first signs of a nestling.  But I can’t be sure.  Both adult owls were out, but I only have photographs of one leaving the cavity.  Are the fuzzy blobs, nestlings or an adult paying a visit to the nest?  I can’t be sure.

One of the owls made lots of calls this evening, but they didn’t seem to be directed at the owls mate.  Could they be calls for the nestlings to start exploring the outside world?