A Scots rescue centre are celebrating some ‘egg-cellent’ news just days after one of their owls was stolen during an early morning raid.
Maximus, a Eurasian eagle owl, was snatched from his enclosure at the Blue Highlands Bird of Prey Centre during the robbery in Brora last week.
His life-long mate of 18 years, Victoria, was left distraught by his sudden disappearance but was thankfully reunited with him around 24 hours later after he was dumped nearby.
Fears were raised that the duo, who were left shaken but physically unharmed, would struggle to reform their bond following the ordeal.
But the duo are now preparing for parenthood after Victoria laid an egg which Maximus is currently sitting on.
Jane Wilson, assistant director at the centre, said: “We thought it was going to take some time for them to settle back into their partnership, that there would be almost like a getting back together period.
“We weren’t even sure how long it would take because they had been so distressed. For the first couple of days, the shell shock was quite apparent.
“But he has been so attentive, so loving towards her, it’s beautiful.
“We noticed a couple of days ago that he was spending quite a lot of time inspecting the nest scrapes that they have in the ground.
"He has not moved out of it for over 24 hours now.
“Obviously we haven’t disturbed him to have a look but we’re as sure as we can be that there is an egg under there and he has just planted himself.
“He’s actually not eating at the moment because he’s decided that fatherhood takes priority over everything else.
“She’s eating, she’s quite happy watching what’s going on and quite approving of all this attention that she’s receiving.
“It’s unbelievable and we are just so pleased.”
All going well, staff at the centre should hear the pitter patter of tiny owl feet in around 30 days.
