Austin, Texas, March 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- For the second year, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center has launched a live owl camera to share its resident great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) with the world. Over the next several weeks, thanks to a live video stream installed through a collaboration with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, everyone can watch live as Athena the owl nests and rears her young. This year marks the 13th consecutive year that Athena has returned to her highly visible nesting site inside the Center’s gardens.
Athena is currently incubating one egg, and there is a high probability that she will produce a second egg soon, which will be broadcast live.
Link: Athena the Great Horned Owl Live Cam
Athena’s nest is in a raised planter, safely nestled in a corner and underneath a sotol (Dasylirion wheeleri) plant that provides shade and shelter. When her eggs hatch, the nest site is visible from the ground, and Wildflower Center visitors can enjoy the antics of fluffy little owlets in person.
The web camera, however, provides a rare opportunity to view a wild great horned owl rearing her young from a short distance, as the camera is mounted just several feet from the nest site. And the live camera includes infrared technology, allowing dawn, dusk and nighttime viewing of the mostly nocturnal owls’ behaviors, from incubating to feeding to fledging.
“Athena and our wildlife camera have made it possible for people to have a powerful and unforgettable connection with nature. We hope that getting a close-up view of a great horned owl rearing her young will inspire people to protect and conserve our natural environment,” says Lee Clippard, executive director of the Wildflower Center.
Since her first season at the Wildflower Center, Athena has successfully raised owlets every season but one, when she mysteriously left the nest after about two weeks’ time. Wildlife can be unpredictable, and there is no guarantee that the famed owl will remain in the nest from egg-laying to incubation, and through hatching this year. But there is reason to be hopeful.
"Athena and her mate have been very consistent in their nesting habits,” says Charles Eldermire, project leader for Cornell Lab’s Bird Cams. “She has been unbothered by the high volume of curious visitors, so there is every reason to hope for a successful nesting season this year.”
Athena the owl has appeared each year during the start of wildflower season, incubating her eggs for around four weeks, then caring for the owlets – with the help of her mate – for up to six weeks following hatching.
"It’s exciting to watch Athena nest and to see the process unfold so closely,” said Dr. Sean Griffin, the Center’s director of science and conservation. “We learned a lot last year about Athena’s habits and look forward to sharing the experience with the world this year."
For more information about visiting Athena at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, visit the website here.
Get the latest updates on Athena’s nest by following the Wildflower Center on Instagram here.
All of the Cornell Lab’s live cams may be accessed here.
For press inquiries, contact Scott Simons, director of marketing and communications at the Wildflower Center.
About The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is the State Botanic Garden & Arboretum of Texas and welcomes more than 275,000 guests annually to its 284 acres of gardens, trails and exhibitions, thus fulfilling its mission of inspiring the conservation of native plants. As a fully self-funded unit of The University of Texas at Austin, the Wildflower Center’s investments in science, conservation and education include a native seed bank, a comprehensive database of North American native plants, and research programs in collaboration with the university. The Center is the embodiment of Mrs. Johnson’s environmental legacy. “The environment is where we all meet, where we all have a mutual interest,” she said. “It is the one thing all of us share. It is not only a mirror of ourselves, but a focusing lens on what we can become.”
About the Cornell Lab of Ornithology
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is a membership institution dedicated to interpreting and conserving the Earth’s biological diversity through research, education, and citizen science focused on birds.
Scott Simons Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center 5124225948 ssimons@wildlfower.org
