![\"Peekaboo](\"http:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/12\/great-horned-owl-4299.jpg\" "\\"Peekaboo")
<\/a><\/p>\nPeekaboo youngster<\/em><\/p>\n Most of these older granaries have seen their better days since many were\u00a0constructed \u00a0in\u00a0the 1930’s and have had to withstand the fierce Montana wind but the owls love them for both roosting and nesting.\u00a0 Here you can see a very young GHO peering out at me over the back of its sibling.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0Siblings on granary floor<\/em><\/p>\n These are the siblings on the granary floor.\u00a0 It has been used only for junk storage for many years so it’s very\u00a0cluttered but the owls don’t seem to mind in the least.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Chicks in tree nest<\/em><\/p>\n GHO’s\u00a0will often nest in trees but like other owls and falcons they do not build their own nests, preferring to take over the previously used nests of other species such as Red-tailed Hawks (most commonly), other hawks, crows, ravens and herons.\u00a0 I found this nest next to a major road about 35 miles from the farm.\u00a0\u00a0 I don’t know what species originally constructed this nest but the spring after these photos were taken the nest was being used by a pair of Swainson’s Hawks.\u00a0\u00a0Interspecific \u00a0recycling in the bird world…<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0Three GHO chicks in a tree<\/em><\/p>\n This is the same nest as in the previous image.\u00a0 As you can see the three youngsters seem to be thriving and are quite mobile.\u00a0 GHO’s are very capable of climbing around on the nest tree by the time they’re 40 days old.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n At this stage (just over 40 days) these fledglings take their exploring seriously.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Yawning fledgling<\/em><\/p>\n Though this may look like a threat from this\u00a0young owl it was only the end of a vigorous yawn.\u00a0 These\u00a0fledglings spend a lot of time yawning but they usually close their eyes completely when doing so.\u00a0 This is as close as I came to getting the eyes open during a yawn.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Siblings<\/em><\/p>\n Sometimes they would do their exploring independently but often when they’re still quite young they will venture out together.\u00a0\u00a0 The bird on the left had an injured left upper\u00a0eyelid that was quite swollen.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Great Horned Owl fledgling on an old lug-type tractor tire<\/em><\/p>\n Whenever I visit the farm in the spring\u00a0I will typically take early morning and late evening strolls around the place just to see where one of these\u00a0young owls\u00a0might show up.\u00a0 This one was dozing on an old metal tractor tire just as\u00a0 the sun was coming up.\u00a0 Most of the time it was sleeping but every few minutes it would pop one eye open just to see what I was up to.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0Fledgling on ladder<\/em><\/p>\n One morning I found this bird an old ladder.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0Back lit fledgling<\/em><\/p>\n Same ladder, probably the same bird but different lighting and angle.\u00a0 I kind of like the rim lighting here but it won’t be\u00a0to everyone’s taste.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0Wet fledgling<\/em><\/p>\n One morning just after it quit raining I peeked around the outside corner of one granary to see if there were any owls in the openings of a nearby granary.\u00a0 There weren’t, but as I looked up to my left this drenched\u00a0juvenile was looking down at me from an opening in the granary I was next to – from no more than 20 feet away.\u00a0\u00a0 We were very curious about each other at such a close distance…<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0Fledgling at base of granary<\/em><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n