To learn how barn owls lay their eggs, I follow the lives of a pair of barn owls living in my Yorkshire garden via cameras hidden in their nest. Gylfie and her barn owl partner, Finn, are nesting inside an owl box I made for them called Elm Stump. So far the pair have three pure white barn owl eggs.
How many eggs do barn owls lay?
Barn owls can have super clutches and I have heard of up to eleven eggs being laid, but here in my garden at Fotherdale, we tend to get clutches of between five to seven eggs.
How long does it take a barn owl to lay an egg?
Egg laying is quite strenuous and takes a lot of effort. Gylfie laid her first egg in Elm Stump on Tuesday, May 4th, at 20:50. It took her four days to produce this egg. In fact this was an unusually long time and after three days of watching her straining on the live cameras, I did get a little worried that she could be egg bound. I was so relieved when she stood up to reveal a beautiful white egg on the fourth day.
Barn owls usually lay while sitting and the first time you see that an egg has been laid is generally known as the 'reveal' and refers to when the owl stands up to reveal the egg beneath her. However, Gylfie laid her second egg whilst standing up and this egg actually knocked against the first as it dropped down! Watch the clip below to see:
How frequently do barn owls lay?
In general barn owls lay every two to three days. By following Gylfie's egg-laying process last year I have a rough idea of what to expect from her this year. She laid her first egg in Elm Stump on Tuesday, May 4th, at 20:50, the egg on Friday, May 7th, at 20:29, and the third on Monday, May 10th, at 13:54. The time span between the first two eggs was 69 hours and between the second and third eggs, it was 67 hours. Last year Gylfie laid three eggs with a 71.5 hour time span between each egg. She was fairly regimented about this.
When do barn owls lay eggs?
Barn owls usually lay eggs in April, however, Gylfie laid in May this year. This could be because of the weather since this spring was unseasonably cold.
How long is incubation?
Barn owls incubate their eggs from the moment they are laid and will incubate for 32 days. Last year only one egg hatched from Gylfie's clutch, and that was Solo. In Solo's case, Gylfie was in the nest incubating for a total of 37 days but I suspect the reason for this is that Solo hatched from the last egg to be laid.
Brooding barn owl eggs
Only the female broods the eggs and subsequent chicks. She spends all her time brooding and only gets up to stretch or defecate. Interestingly, barn owls don't leave the nest to defecate. This is something you never see a tawny owl do. A female tawny will leave the nest to defecate, but this may be because barn owl nests tend to be bigger and more spacious. The male's job is to supply food. So far Finn, who is very inexperienced, has been reluctant to pass on the food he has caught for Gylfie. I'm hoping by the time the chicks hatch he will have become better at this since Gylfie is now entirely dependent on him. Click here to read the story of Gylfie & Finn.
When will the eggs hatch?
If all goes according to plan the first egg should hatch in 32 days' time, on June 1st, and then we will get to watch the chicks as they grow from tiny, featherless creatures into beautiful barn owls. Interestingly, barn owls begin to incubate their eggs from the moment the first one is laid and this means that the chicks hatch at different stages so that there can be a considerable size difference between the chicks. In times when food is scarce, the older chicks can harm, and even kill the younger ones. Click here to read the story of Gylfie's only chick last year, Solo.
Watch barn owls brood
You can watch Gylfie as she incubates her eggs on my live cameras, which I stream on my YouTube channel. Click here to watch. Below is a live broadcast from my studio all about Gylfie and her incubation. Watch it to see some beautiful footage of her and Finn inside the nest and of her chicks last year:
