Woman Welcomes Adorable Feathered Family To Her Front Yard Owl Box

You don’t have to live deep in the woods to experience a touch of nature—just ask this Central Florida woman.

Five years ago, Redditor perpetualcomplexity1 installed a basic owl box in her residential neighborhood in Melbourne, Florida to see what might happen. To her delight, Eastern screech owls have made it their seasonal home ever since.

This year, she discovered four fluffy owlets tucked safely inside and shared a cute video clip.

This year I have 4 baby owlets in my owl box!
byu/perpetualcomplexity1 inaww

If you have trouble viewing the video above, try the version below:

Rather than disturb them, she gently peeked in with her camera—careful to respect the protective mama owl, who was watching from close by but who over the years has grown “used to her.”

She wrote, “The mom and dad are very used to me, and when I took this video, the mother was sitting in the same tree right over my shoulder.”

The woman explained that the owls tend to arrive in late February, and once the chicks fledge, she gives the box a clean out so it’s ready for next year—no frills, just a fresh, simple welcome for the next feathered family.

She noted that after the “babies jump out” she simply cleans the box out. When asked if other critters use the box when the owls aren’t there she shared that she’s had woodpeckers have their babies in it twice too but otherwise it’s only ever been the owls’ home.

For others who might be wanting to try and attract owls to nest, she suggests getting one of the ready-made owl boxes from Amazon (she purchased JCs Wildlife Screech or Saw-Whet Owl House) The next steps are simple. “You basically just put it 10 feet up in a tree and make sure that the opening faces any direction, but north,” she explained. “Keep wood chips in the bottom like an inch or two thick and the owls will find it.”

When asked why north, she noted that it keeps the owls out of the cold north wind.

She noted that the parents do a great job taking care of their babies. “Every night at dusk, you can watch them fly around like little fighter jets. They’ll bring the babies lizards and insects.”

What a wonderful way to not only watch nature around your home, but also help owls raise their young.