Tawny Owl #59

All week I have been cooing over the fluffy baby tawny owl pictures on FB at The Spinnies, a small nature reserve in North Wales. There were three chicks in the owl box at the start of the week and we decided on Monday that today would be the day we took our day trip to see them. On Wednesday, one of the chicks fell out of the box and one of the wardens eventually came and retrieved it and put it back, only for it to end up outside on a branch a few minutes later. I guess it was ready to go after all. 
Yesterday, a second chick was photographed on a nearby branch and I was fearful that by the time we arrived today, they would all be gone. They stay near the nest as they are dependent upon their parents for another 10-12 weeks, but you rarely see them again as they stay well hidden. 
As you can see, the last chick was still in the box and wisely decided to stay put as it was VERY windy today. It wasn't very active at all, but on the odd occasion it poked it's head up to see if anyone was watching. 
It's first time I've seen any sort of owl chicks so I was thrilled to see it, even for just the briefest of moments. 
After the excitement of the morning we dropped into RSPB Conwy on the way home and had a nice couple of hours taking in the reserve, adding a red-breasted merganser(extra) to our annual list. 

All in all a thoroughly enjoyable day, despite the wind.