Tis the season, my second great horned owl nest project for 2026

[moss]

Great horned owl young are well known to be very resilient even when they're on the ground before they might want to be. This guy went out of the nest too early, was found bruised, weak, and starving on the ground. A raptor rehabber I work with buffed him up (stuffed with pinkie mice) and I put him back up when he was ready. His sister is much bigger and very aggressive, she may have bumped him out of the nest. Homeowner found it next to her driveway and sought help. I did some nest work, what they were using was essentially a floppy diving board.

Tech notes: I recently sewed up a new double eye 15' lanyard with segmented stitching for improved wrap/grip on smaller diameter wood. Also built a new 50' hook line with 9mm PMI EZ-Bend. I left the sewn eye open enough so I can fit a carabiner in the shared hook shackle eye when I want to do a hard choke/closed anchor. I'm finding that wrapping a timber hitch with the hook as a stopper is still my favorite closed anchor with the hook line.
-AJ

 

[Steve-o]

Nice AJ! When you stitch the next back together, are you using all natural cordage? Thinking zip ties would be super easy, but not so environmental friendly. Dangerous too?

 

[moss]

Nice AJ! When you stitch the next back together, are you using all natural cordage? Thinking zip ties would be super easy, but not so environmental friendly. Dangerous too?

Great comment. I typically use a cheap polyester/nylon paracord. The stuff breaks down relatively quickly (over 2-3 years) by UV light. It would be better to use a natural twine. Most of what's available in hardware stores etc. is a jute twine which breaks down too quickly. The owls will use the nest multiple years so it's good if the cordage is fairly stable.

Nowadays most great horned owl (GHO) nest rebuilds or replacements are done with a cut down plastic landscaper barrel lashed in and lined with pine branches/needles or something similar. Natural fiber or split wood baskets are the best but hard to find in the right size and shape. What I do is more visually natural and more like what a GHO actually wants to use. I do get criticism from the rehab community for the way I do it, too slow etc. ;-) I can't help it, it's interesting and rewarding to make a nice nest for raptors.

For this particular project I had photos of the nest ahead of my travel to the site. It looked good from the ground. For a nest like that I might add some guardrails using pine branches from up in the tree. When I reached the nest it was a disaster and obvious why the owlet had fallen out. Property owner had a woven "fashion basket" that I was able to make use of.

GHO do not build their own nests and sometimes their "used nest" selection is terrible. They've evolved using crap nest sites for tens of thousands of years and are very successful at it. Eggs roll out, young fall yet the species continues and thrives. Where humans get involved is when an owlet ends up in trouble on the ground next to a road, busy bicycle/hiking trail or in an area where dogs are walked. If we did nothing the species as a whole is absolutely not effected. The finders of these owlets become emotionally invested and the rehabbers are often available to assess, triage, treat and get the owlets back in action if they are not too damaged from their falls. For an owlet a broken wing or pelvis usually equals euthanasia.

In all cases every owl that survives counts towards ecosystem services like rodent reduction in urban and suburban areas, and in rural farming areas. Our main problem now is how many great horned owls (and many raptor species including bald eagles) are dying from secondary rodenticide poisoning consuming anticoagulant contaminated rats and mice. It's been brutal dealing with that reality, I've recovered too many that suffered a terrible death. The beat goes on.
-AJ

 

[moss]

Nice AJ! When you stitch the next back together, are you using all natural cordage? Thinking zip ties would be super easy, but not so environmental friendly. Dangerous too?

The short answer ;-) Yes, the homeowner offered zip ties and I declined. They would work fine especially if I clipped off the ends after they're tightened up. I like using cordage, gives me more options to improvise as I'm working branches into the nest. I'm surprised no one's offered me duct tape during a nest project ;-)
-AJ

 

[surveyor]

There are Owls in the woods behind our house, Not sure which species, but quite large and vocal, even in the afternoon. I see one from time to time when it is calling or flying a short distance, and then talk to him. He might deign to look at me briefly . I would not be surprised if there is a nest nearby.

 

[moss]

There are Owls in the woods behind our house, Not sure which species, but quite large and vocal, even in the afternoon. I see one from time to time when it is calling or flying a short distance, and then talk to him. He might deign to look at me briefly . I would not be surprised if there is a nest nearby.

Barred owl is “Who cooks for you!”, and sometimes a wild “monkey call”. Great horned owl is the classic hoot owl, a deep resonant call that travels a long distance. You probably have both nesting in your woods or nearby.
-AJ