News from the nesting box – eggs without an owl

Thanks to the nest box camera in House 2, everyone on campus can closely observe which bird is in the nest at any given time and what is happening there. This also allowed us to see that the breeding pygmy owl left the nest on Wednesday evening and has not returned since. Unfortunately, this means the embryos in the eggs are no longer viable.

There could be various reasons for the pygmy owl’s disappearance. She may have been startled by a loud noise or a vibration, or may have left the nest at this unusual time of day for her for other reasons. All of this means she will not return, because it is important to realise that, at this stage, owls do not yet have as strong a bond with the egg as they later do with the chick. That is why the incubation period is, incidentally, the most critical phase of a bird’s development!

For many years, Jens Voigt from the Saxon Ornithologists’ Association has been advising the university on matters relating to bird conservation. Since the nesting camera was installed, we have been in particularly frequent contact with him to interpret what we have observed and report on it accurately, and sometimes also to determine appropriate conservation measures. The nest will be examined by the ornithologist next week and the eggs removed if necessary.

This would allow other bird species to take over the nest and breed there. Incidentally, the most likely candidates this year are the late-breeding kestrels, which breed well into August. On 25 April, a pair was in fact already spotted in the nest again! We’ll keep an eye on things and continue to report on what’s happening in the nest box!