18/09/18 - Tawny Owls

This week we had a close encounter with a beautiful Tawny Owl, when wildlife photographer Mark Hughes called into the NNR base at Bank Island with a young, fledged bird that had been hit by a car, and picked up from the side of a road. Our team of young people from Ad Astra took this bird to Battle Flatts vets at Stamford Bridge so it could be checked over by Mark (especially its eyes which can be damaged during vehicle collisions), before it headed onward into the care of Jean for her expert TLC and rehabilitation. It was then great for Mike and his team from Ad Astra to be involved in its release, as it was desperate to be out and back in the wild. Jean also brought back an adult male Kestrel to be released at the other side of the reserve near Thornton – originally found half drowned in a water trough having fallen in and becoming waterlogged. Presumably a local breeding bird with a territory in the area - great to know it’s back out there – well done Jean and team.

Over the last few weeks as the nights start to draw in we’ve been hearing more (Tawny Owls) calling, with one bird regularly heard from the green roof of the reserve base. Birds are more vocal at this time of year as young birds start to disperse from their natal sites, seldom ranging very far as they look to find their own territories. Tawny Owls are a widespread breeding species with c50,000 pairs in England, Wales and Scotland, however despite Tawny Owls being our most familiar owl, there's still much we have to learn about them. In order to help fill in some of those gaps the BTO are running a survey that anyone can help contribute to - this simple survey involves listening for their call from gardens or other green spaces this autumn and winter. By taking part you'll help to increase the understanding of their behaviour and distribution, particularly focusing on the impact of urbanisation and artificial lighting – we’ll be sending in our records from around the reserve. Visit the website https://www.bto.org/volunteer-surveys/project-owl/tawny-owl-calling-survey for more information and to sign up for this great citizen science project.