The Oregon Zoo has announced the birth of four snowy owlets, joining parents Rocky and Banff at its Great Northwest owl habitat.
The zoo said the newborns were a happy surprise the team caring for Rocky and Banff.
“We hoped Rocky and Banff would have owlets someday, but we thought it would be another year or two at least,” Ronda Naseth, a keeper in the zoo’s North America area, said in a statement. “When Rocky laid four eggs earlier this summer we were thrilled.”
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Just as snowy owls do, Rocky and Banff made their nest in the ground, at the base of a large tree.
“Banff is constantly delivering food to Rocky and the owlets,” Naseth said. “He’s a great owl dad.”
The zoo says the owlets stay warm under their mom’s feathers. They are expected to start venturing out of the nest in the next couple of weeks.
Zoo visitors might be able to see them in the snowy owl habitat near Black Bear Ridge.
