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Courtship
The male and female owl begin finding favor with each other usually in March, but it can begin as early as February. -
Egg laying
The female owl begins to lay her eggs on a soft-surfaced nest, which was built by her and the male, during the first half of April. -
Incubation
In order for the eggs to hatch into cute, healthy owls, incubation means the mother owl must sit on her eggs to keep them warm so they can mature. This process usually occurs around the middle of April and early May. -
Hatching
After about a month of incubation, the baby owls finally hatch out of their shells and truly enter the world. -
Young growing in nest
During this period, the mother owl is helping the baby owls grow to be healthy boy and girl owls. -
Fledging
About 10 weeks after the baby owls have hatched, the process known as "fledging" begins. Fledging is when the mother owl begins to prepare her babies for flight as they start growing their feathers. -
Young keep returning to the nest
At this point, the young owls are getting better and better at flying every day. They can finally fly without help from their mother, but they still return to the nest after every flight. -
Dispersal
After the young owls have become experienced flyers, they eventually leave their mother and home nest for good. They fly off to start happy, hooting lives of their own!
