Norton Barn owls, 2016 a good breeding year?

Barn owl picking up vole from right foot. Cloudy June evening. Tyto alb

Are the Norton Barn owls having a successful nesting season? The short answer is yes, we have checked over half the know nest site at Little Haugh and Halls farms and so far found six breeding pairs.

20% of the land on the farms is managed for wildlife as well as for the commercial game bird shoot. The wide rough field verges, woodland and grassland are all ideal for hunting Barn owls. However, lack of nest sites was a problem that we tackled in autumn 2014 by erecting 15 new boxes, this summer 10 of the new nest boxes show signs of Barn owl use and 3 have been used by Tawny owls.

Barn Owl young in new Barn owl box

Over the next few days we will be checking the older nest boxes on the farms. These boxes are higher up and more difficult to see into, I tend to put them off to last but, I will check them and let you know if we find any more breeding pairs.

The 2 broods in the photos have only two young owls. This may be due to the cold wet spring and that the adult Barn owls are young and inexperienced. However, the adults are now catching voles and mice in good numbers and the boxes are quite smelly from the voles waiting to be eaten!

Barn owl young in new Barn owl box 2nd brood

The longest established Barn owl nest site on the farms is deep inside the Halls farm Straw barn. In the last few days Steve Honeywood has seen 4 young owls being fed on top of one of the bales. It will not be long before the young owls leave and it is probable that this pair will have a second brood, we will keep watching.

Barn owls boxes, good for hornets too

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