After a few absent years the great gray owls made a come back to our local forests. Every three to four years the rodent population peaks and 2024 seems to have been a year of an upswing. When the rodents are thriving, so does the nomad of the taiga and other species dependent on them as well. I got to follow 4 different pairs of great grays last year and a total of 5 owlets who left the safety of their nests and journeyed out into the woodlands.
Early one morning in the beginning of April I went out into the forest to see if I could find any tracks from the wolf family in our area. Fresh snow had fallen the previous evening and most wildlife enthusiasts knows the thrill of it. The landscape turns into an open book where you get to see who's been roaming the roads and game trails during the night and what they've been up to. During my route I stopped to check up on a great gray owl nesting site in hope to spot owls in the area but I couldn't find any signs of activity. I decided to head back to my car when a familiar sound from the other side of the forest road stopped me. It was the hoots of a great gray owl male, best described as a muffled pumping sound that starts strong and fades as it goes. Since I didn't want to walk into the forest and potentially make him uncomfortable I stayed on the road and kept on scanning the trees up and down with my binoculars to see if I could distinguish his gray silhouette amongst the trunks. I found him in a spruce, perfectly camouflaged. Suddenly out of nowhere, another hoot joined the conversation and I think my heart actually skipped I beat when I realised that a great gray female was responding to the call of the male. I couldn't believe how lucky I was. The couple had settled in the area and this was the start of a great gray summer.
GREAT GRAY OWL
STRIX NEBULOSA
The great gray owl is Swedens second largest owl with a wingspan of 130-160 cm and a body length of 60-70 cm.
The female is larger than the male and usually weighs in on 1.5 kg versus the male 1 kg. Their most prominent features are their bright yellow iris, large facial discs and big round head.
During winter 2024 I found a lot of tracks from rodents around the forest.
Scouting grays
I begin early on season to scan the forest for signs of prey activity in the snow. Food is vital and the grays are dependent on rodents to thrive. The rodent population fluctuate, meaning they peak and crash every three to four years and this can clearly been seen in numbers of nesting owls. The researchers are not quite sure why this happens and it seems to be a bit complex. Diseases, climate change and predator's way of regulating the population are some hypothesis. Besides looking for status of prey I also listen for the territorial calls of the owls during the so called owl months, February - April. April is the best month to search for grays but I've been hearing them hoot as early as in January during good conditions. While out listening I usually begin in familiar territories and look for new potential ones as I go. I start before dusk and as the last light is fading I dwell in the soundscape of the dark forest. Windless nights are pivotal to be able to hear far away calls and patience is key, I stop and stay on the forest roads for a minimum of 5 minutes up to 30 each. I pin areas where territorial calls have been heard and revisit them within a couple of weeks. I also spend much time waiting next to good hunting grounds around sunset, especially ones where I've been spotting tracks from rodents earlier. I look for clearings, older clear cut areas with high grass and streams, meadows and older forests. If I spot a hunting owl I'm very observant with where the prey is going, if the owl hunts for itself or delivers it to his mate. During these times (April-May) I listen for the begging calls of the female that'll echo through the forest as she waits for the male to show her that he's a good provider. The male courts the female by bringing her food and he'll provide for her while she broods. These calls can be heard from when the courtship has begun and during the upcoming breeding season.
Please keep in mind that it's of great importance to put the wellbeing of the animals first. Keep a respectful distance and stay calm and quite in the field.
Prey delivery.
The begging calls of the female echoes through the forest while she's waiting for the male to court her.
A great gray summer
I was over the moon by the first pair of grays and I'll soon be happily surprised to find 3 more pair settling in the area. When one big round head after the other started to pop up through my binoculars at different nesting sites, feelings of pure gratitude ran through my body. We had found a total of 4 nesting pairs and the forest would be blessed with a new addition of forest trolls. Out of 4 we found 3 in artificial nests and 1 in a twig nest. Great gray owls, and the same goes for all our owls, are no nestbuilders. They inhabit twig nests made by other species such as buzzards and goshawks or choose artificial ones or broken dead trees. The great gray owl is on the Swedish redlist listed as VU (vulnerable) meaning that the population is small, decreasing in numbers and are threatened. This years addition to the species were therefore such great news. Through social media and contacts I got to see many pairs of great grays breeding successfully in other parts of the country as well and it really became clear to me how much people actually care for nature and its inhabitants.
The female will incubate the eggs for about 28-30 days, laying the eggs with 2 or 3 days apart. This means that there'll be a difference in size, the first hatchling will be visibly larger than the last. As I have emphasised more than one time, food is key, it'll determine how many eggs there'll be and how well the owlets will be doing. Last year our 4 nestings resulted in 5 owlets making it out into the forest. This makes me think that food was still a bit scarce and that this upcoming year will be better. Let's cross our fingers!
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det går fort
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Återkommer för häckning
KÄLLOR Ove Stefansson Nordanskogens, artfakta
A twig nest used by grays in 2024 and a 4 weeks old owlet who recently jumped out of the nest.
A tired mum during one rainy morning in June.
Great gray siblings taking shelter from the ground on an uprooted tree.
