Number six

I was on the road at 6:30 this morning to pick up the sixth baby great horned owl of the year. This one is a bit older than the other five, he's what's known as a "brancher". That means he's almost ready to fly but not quite. You'll note he has a lot of hard feathers on his wings and he's in a threatening posture.

The good news is that I found the nest with mom and a sibling in it. The bad news is that it's up on an advertising sign on a four lane highway. There are no branches for these two babies to head for when they decide to take off. I think this one either tried that or sort of fell off the platform. He was found in the middle of the road but luckily it was early and a caring person got him to a safe place and called me.

Now to get him back to the nest. I could probably do it with my extension ladder but will call Rocky Mountain Power to see if they have a small bucket truck available. They're the best when I need help in this manner. In the meantime, the baby is in a safe place.