Friday 29 October

3am: Wake up and do a quick head count on the balcony. All are there and parents are in the area to feed them. With everything calm and peaceful, I drift back to sleep easily.

A more respectable time to wake up: Teeny is not in the pot. At first I couldn't find Teeny, but eventually I spotted him / her pushed up against a barbet's log we have near the owl box. We keep offering the owl box and for some reason, 'our' owls don't want to know!

By lunchtime, Teeny begame restless and went to the pot to find a way up. It still can't get the hang of the wooden perches and the parrot jungly gym with smaller perches to get up. Teeny eventually walked the length of the balcony, and plonked itself face-flat on the floor next to the far pot. Pot Plant Owl was getting some rest in that far pot plant, and I think Teeny just wanted to be close to its mom.

Don't forget to vote for the chicks' names on the Africam.com website. The Biggest chick's shortlist of names should be up today. The link to name the chicks is:
http://www.africam.com/wildlife/nicknametheowlchicksvote2thebiggest

3pm Central African time: Our little 'rehab' chick, Teeny, is sleeping in the owl box on the balcony floor. This is the first time that the owl box has been properly used. It looks very cute lying in there - under shade and spread out.

PM - Like typical children, the chicks are now wanting to push the boundaries and see what they are allowed to get away with. With Teeny sleeping face-down in the owl box, and other sibling sitting sweetly in the nest pot plant, one little explorer decided to join Pot Plant Owl in the far pot plant. With surprising dexterity, this chick 'flew' straight up from the floor to the lip of the pot, and landed next to mom, looking ever so pleased with itself. Pot Plant Owl watched with one eye, and ignored her chick. Moments later, she flew away to the nearby roof.

Not content with just sitting in a new pot plant, little explorer clamboured up to the far balcony pillar. It stood there - again with a smug expression on its face - looking out towards the wetland, and the owls' hunting ground. Occasionally, it opened its wings and flapped them furiously, almost losing its balance in the process. I, of course, was not amused by its antics. Many people watching joined me in mentally willing our Columbus to 'get back in the pot'. It was only when food was delivered that the pull towards the balcony floor and finally the nest pot plant proved too much for this chick. Eventually it flapped back up to the nest, and we all breathed a collective sigh of relief.

While this was happening, Teeny had been hissing so loudly for food, that I thought throat lozengers might have to be thrown down to him / her. Pot Plant Owl and Pappa worked tirelessly for a while, bringing in lots of food for each chick. We had to move the camera a few times to give viewers a chance to see what we were watching from here.

Eventually, all was calm on the home front, and we bade our owl family goodnight. We left the chicks looking 'well-rounded', sleepy and content.