Good evening,newbie reporting. I have a concern/question, I have a Female Spotted eagle owl that nested on the side-stop of a shooting range, she stays put while the shooting continues,not moving. My suspicion is that the eggs are incubating. It is the first time seeing a Spotted eagle owl nesting on the ground, and not in a tree/High-rise structure. Is this a common occurrence,should I perhaps attempt a feeding/water station for her and the hatchlings in the coming weeks? My concern is that when the eggs hatch, that the hatchlings will get a scare and leave the nest as soon as the range is in use. Attached is pictures of the nest and Mother
Welcome to the forum!
I don’t know where you are, but in Michigan the Department of Natural Resources would be who I’d contact. Let them know the situation and if you can, provide nesting/incubation/fledgling information. The local Audubon Society might want to know if you have one.
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Spotted Eagle-owls do not occur in North America. On the other hand, this is October – nesting season should be over in the Northern Hemisphere, but starting in the Southern Hemisphere, which agrees with the known range of the Spotted Eagle-owl in southern Africa.
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The photo is of a great horned owl
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Given that the spotted eagle owl is also in the genus Buho and looks (to my eyes) identical to a great horned owl, how can you tell?
I guess we need the OP to give a location!
Wow, first of all, very cool photo!
She might have a nest, but she (or he) might also just be using a burrow as a roost site during the day.
I don’t know a lot about spotted eagle owls in particular, but here are some thoughts based on my experience with other owls, and birds in general.
If it is a nest, I don’t think the noise will scare the hatchlings away. For one thing, I’m guessing that like many other birds, they develope a sense of hearing awhile before hatching, meaning they will have a chance to get used to the sounds in their environment while still in the eggs. For another, if they do get scared, their first reaction will probably be to hide in the nest under their mother.
Even if the hatchlings do run off before they’re ready (which I doubt) the parents will probably follow them and continue to care for them. Owls are known for being some of the better parents in the bird world.
I don’t think they need a feeding or watering station, although if the surrounding area is very dry for a long distance, then water might help, if only because it attracts their prey. (Owls themselves are not big drinkers.)
If you do decide to put water out, don’t put it too close to the possible nest, because it could attract predators as well as prey. The parent owls might have deliberately chosen a sight reasonably far from the nearest water source for that reason.
Also, make sure it’s very shallow and has rough sides, so that if baby owls topple in, they don’t drown.
Mostly I think all you need to do is watch and enjoy them! 
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