Two Barn owls Finn and Gilfie, are starting a family after months of courtship. At the beginning of May, Gilfie is ready to start laying her eggs. Finn steps up to make sure he can provide for his family.
After Gilfie lays her first egg, Finn brings home food while she incubates the egg. Gilfie eats happily, and Finn is curious about the egg. He wonders if he should take over, but Gilfie pushes him away.
Incubation should be left to the experts, it seems. Barn owls lay eggs every two to three days, and Gilfie lays two more eggs. With a total of three eggs, Gilfie spends most of her time incubating them.
Gilfie only gets up to stretch and go to the bathroom. Meanwhile, Finn works hard to continue bringing home food for the nest. They even survive an attack from tawny owls.
The first egg finally hatches after 31 days, and the two other chicks follow soon after. Now that there are more mouths to feed, Finn has to do his best to get more food.
Unfortunately, the competition for food is fierce, and the youngest chick is lagging behind. The chick is tiny and doesn’t take the food Gilfie is trying to feed him.
The youngest chick passes away, but thankfully the other two grow big and healthy. Finn and Gilfie did their best, but sometimes nature can be cruel.
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