The Burrowing Owl (Athene cunicularia) builds its nests in burrows made by various types of mammals. These owls have an asynchronous hatch. Females typically lay one egg per day for 8-12 days, incubation of each egg beginning as soon as it is laid. As a result, earlier laid eggs hatch earlier than those laid later. This asynchronous hatch results in age and thus size differences between the first and last hatched chicks of a clutch. Due to the size advantage, the earlier hatched chicks within a clutch may not need to fight to get food. In contrast, later-hatched chicks may be more aggressive since they must compensate for their size disadvantage. Burrowing Owls mate monogamously, and the members of a pair have different roles. Males spend the majority of the time outside of the burrow, guarding, the nest and hunting for themselves and their mates. Females, on the other hand, spend more time inside the burrow, incubating and caring for the young. As a result of their different roles, males may be innately more dominant and aggressive (to protect their nest from intruders), compared to females. In this study, I examine the possible effects of both asynchronous hatch order and gender on behaviour of young Burrowing Owls
