Another Barn Owl casualty on the Tralee Bypass

Another Barn Owl has been found dead along the Tralee Bypass - the fifth such casualty in less than a year. Three were found dead along the new road shortly after it opened in October 2013, which resulted in the National Roads Authority commissioning a detailed, year-long Barn Owl survey of the road and the surrounding area.

Barn Owls are particularly vulnerable to collisions with vehicles, especially on wide, fast roads such as National routes and motorways (Photos: M.O'Clery).

A detailed buildings survey completed in July and August 2013 showed that there are 12 active Barn Owl sites within 5km of the route, and it is possible that several of the owl fatalities have come from some of these sites. However, the last two casualties, recorded during a weekly road casualty survey of the route, were both young birds, hatched in summer 2013, and could also have come from further afield as they dispersed away from their nest.

The weekly survey of the route will be conducted for a full year and aims to record each and every bird and mammal road casualty. This information will be mapped and correlated to the road characteristics, such as embanked (raised) sections, habitat and proximity to known sites. It is hoped this will help to locate the highest risk areas for Barn Owls and go toward promoting mitigation measures, such as screening, in the near future.

This particular individual was a young male, and would have hatched in spring 2013 (Photo: M.O'Clery).

If you find a dead Barn Owl along a road anywhere in Ireland, please report it immediately to this email address

If you find one along the Tralee Bypass, or elsewhere in Co. Kerry, please email this address

The youngest Barn Owl in Ireland?

One of the latest broods of Barn Owls was visited yesterday, at a nest box site near Dingle, Co. Kerry. A check of the box in July revealed the female was still sitting on seven eggs, and by yesterday, three chicks were present. The youngest, pictured below, is about 33 to 35 days old, and will be fledging around day 65, towards the end of September.

The female at this site was born in 2013, and it is possible that she was also born relatively late in the year, which meant she didn't quite make it into breeding condition for the more usual early May laying date. Nevertheless, if the weather remains benign, the chicks should fare ok.

33 day old Barn Owl Chick, Co. Kerry, 24th August (With thanks to Liam Doyle).

Last visit to our Barn Owl nest box

With two of the four chicks at our nest box in Co. Kerry now flying well and spending more and more time away from the nest box, this may well be our last glimpse of the chicks before they fledge and disperse.

The two eldest often spend minutes at a  time away from the box on the other side of the room, and the eldest is even venturing over to the open window where the parents enter and exit with food.

There is lots of wing-stretching and flapping, and a lot of prey is being delivered (see post below) so they are certainly not going hungry. The youngest has been given a large rat to deal with, but this seems to be a little beyond it for the moment. All in all, they are getting the best possible start in life.

Note: The clip below shows only young Barn Owl chicks. The adults don't appear in this case. Although you can see what appears to be adult birds arriving at the nest, these are all clips of young birds flying back to the nest box after exploring the room.

Superabundance of prey

Some footage from a nest box in CO. Kerry has been shown recently (see several of the posts below), but when a  check was made of the cameras on a recent morning, a pile of prey items were seen at the nest box entrance. Spread out, below, were 5 Bank Voles, 3 Wood Mice, and a House Mouse.

Nine prey items found at the entrance of a Barn Owl nest box, July 2014 (M.O'Clery).

Bearing in mind that this was early in the morning, just after a night when the adults not only had to feed themselves, but also four near fully grown chicks. The chicks must have received more than they could eat before daylight, and the parents still brought more to the nest. It is not unusual to occasionally see perhaps 1 to 3 extra prey items at a nest site, but 9 is extraordinary and shows the abundance of prey available to the owls at this site.

More from Barn Owl family of four

This nest box in Co. Kerry, which featured in some of the posts below, has four chicks. The eldest is close to making its first flight, with lots of wing exercising. The youngest is still mostly covered in down and has perhaps two weeks to go.

This video is edited highlights of one night in their lives. Not all the food deliveries to the nest are shown, rather a representative selection. One thing obvious from all the footage is that junior is getting more than his fair share.

The first clip starts at 10.40pm on 19th July, as all four emerge from the nest box.

Four Barn Owl chicks, at a nest box in Co. Kerry, 19th/20th July 2014 (Filmed under licence: M.O'Clery).

A Barn Owl's first flight

Some remarkable footage of one of the first flights of a young Barn Owl. One of a brood of four, she is about 65 days old and ready for the off. Lots of wing-flapping, a final check of distance and bearing and she's off...

Barn Owl fledgling's first flight. Nest box in Co. Kerry (Filmed under licence from NPWS: M.O'Clery).

Survey work reveals new Barn Owl sites

Recent survey work in counties Galway and Kerry have revealed a series of new Barn Owl sites, some of which are roosts, but others active nests. There is tremendous variety here, but they all also have several things in common which make them suitable for Barn Owls. First, they are remote and undisturbed locations, usually well away from busy houses or roads. Second they all offer large, secluded cavities within, and thirdly they are all close to excellent hunting habitat, usually rough grassland but also forestry plantations and hedgerow and woodland edge.

Derelict two storey farmhouse - one of the most typical of Barn Owl sites. Discovered by survey work just yesterday, it has yet to be proven whether this is a nest site. There are fresh Barn Owl feathers and pellets within, so certainly Barn Owls are using it (All photos: Michael O'Clery, under licence from NPWS).

Another typical Barn Owl site, a derelict mansion, hidden in woodland in Co. Kerry. This was also discovered within the past few days, and there was an adult male Barn Owl present in an overhead arch (see below) and the site might also prove to be a nest site. The owners believe the owls have been present for 10-15 years.

An adult male roosting in an overhead arch at the above derelict mansion.

The only currently known tree nest in Co. Kerry was discovered by the owner a few weeks ago. There are two young inside the large cavity in the trunk, just at the top of the ladder, a cavity which descends into the trunk about 2 m (6ft).

Another two story derelict farmhouse, discovered during survey work in Galway a few weeks ago. Pellets on the ground showed that it was used as a winter roost, but there were no owls present during this summer. Hopefully they will return some day.

Although discovered last summer, a return visit this year was able to definitively prove that Barn Owls were breeding in this quarry face in Co. Kerry. At least three chicks are currently present.

Although nesting was proven in 2012 at another site in Co. Kerry - an old hotel outbuilding - there was no activity at the site last year. However, a visit again this summer proved that they have bred once more. The feathers pictured were found directly below the nest site and are the remains of a Barn Owl chick. The growing feathers emerging from the feather shaft are unique to a growing chick. It is even possible to age the bird to around 4 weeks of age at the time of its' death which, judging from the nature of the remains, was at least a month ago. It presumably fell from the nest and was predated. Although initially bad news, after talking with a local farmer, he related how he had seen two Barn Owl chicks demanding food from a parent around the nest site some two weeks earlier, so the nest site was successful after all.

Barn Owl nest box footage

Here's what a healthy brood of four Barn Owl chicks looks like!

Two male and two female Barn Owl chicks are on the verge of fledging from this nest box in Co. Kerry. All the fluffy down is now gone, and they are now almost indistinguishable from adult birds.

This footage was taken on the early morning of 15th July and, by 18th, there was only one chick left at the box, so the video shows almost the last time these four will be together. Over the next week or two they will be fed by the adults in and around the site but, increasingly, away from the box itself. Soon they will learn to fend for themselves, and go their separate ways.

Four Barn Owl chicks at a nest box in Co. Kerry (Filmed under licence from NPWS: M.O'Clery & J. Lusby).

More Barn Owl nest box footage

More nest box edited highlights, from a different nest box somewhere in west Kerry.

(You can hit the arrow icon in the corner of the video for a full screen view)

 
Barn Owl nest camera, Co. Kerry (Video: M.O'Clery, filmed under licence from NPWS).

Mixed results from Barn Owl ringing

After several days of Barn Owl ringing in part of the stronghold of the species - Kerry and NW Cork - results have been somewhat mixed. While several sites have been lost since the cold spring of 2013, where the owls have survived the clutch sizes are a little larger than average. Several broods of four chicks have been recorded, and of 11 sites in Kerry and NW Cork where clutch sizes have been accurately assessed, 30 chicks are currently close to fledging, an average of 2.72 per successful nest.

Four Barn Owl chicks from a nest box near Newmarket, Co. Cork. Five broods of four chicks have been recorded so far this season. Pictured holding the owls, Brin McDonnell of the Duhallow Birdwatching Club, and Elsa Corkery, UCC (M.O'Clery).

Laying dates are as widely separated as in any previous year. A brood of two Barn Owls has already fledged and gone from the nest site near Barraduff, Co. Kerry, while at a nest box site near Dingle, Co. Kerry, a female (pictured below) was still sitting on eggs last week. The female was aged as a first-year, so the lateness may be in part to her only now coming of breeding age. 

If the eggs are hatching about now, the chicks won't be fledging until late September, so fingers crossed that the autumn weather will be relatively benign.

A female Barn Owl, Dingle, Co. Kerry. Last week she was sitting on seven eggs (M.O'Clery).

A huge Ash tree has fallen on top of this Barn Owl site in Co. Kerry though thankfully it didn't damage the nest itself. There are several very young chicks at the nest site here, just a few days old. (M.O'Clery).

Britain is enjoying one of its best breeding seasons ever. For more see the BTO page HERE

Kestrel family parties start to appear

Keep an eye out for noisy family parties of Kestrels. Most have fledged by now, but they will often stay in the general vicinity of the nest site for some days, before eventually roving further afield. The adults will continue to feed them for several weeks, before the young falcons learn to hunt for themselves.

A fledged Kestrel. Although difficult to tell from an adult female, with a reasonably good view, the fresh feathers with pale tips are a good indicator for a young bird. Females at this time of year have less defined barring and are often a bit 'tatty' looking after months of hard work at the nest site. Galway, 29th June (M.O'Clery).

Two young Kestrels noisily begging for food from their parents, despite the fact that the one on the right already has possession of a dead rat. Galway, 29th June (M.O'Clery).

Barn Owl nest camera

Some footage from a Barn Ow nest site on the Dingle Peninsula, Co. Kerry, over the past few nights. There are four chicks within, the oldest about 25 days, the youngest about 15 days old. The male and female are busy feeding them each night...

A screen grab from some of the footage, showing the male arriving to deliver a Bank Vole (Video: M.O'Clery, filmed under licence from NPWS).

Some things to look out for... 

The male delivers prey in the early part of the video, but note the paleness of the outer wing. He is easily distinguishable from the female who appears toward the end of the video - she has more barring on the secondaries (outer wing) and primaries (the longest wing feathers) as well as a more heavily barred tail. Not all pairs are so readily sexed, as there are some females which are only faintly barred and some slightly barred males, but this pair are particularly easy to distinguish.

Notice that both the female and male are already ringed with a small metal band on their legs. An adult male and an adult female were ringed at this site in 2012, and a different female was ringed in 2013. It would be fantastic to discover if these two are the same individuals. We hope to be able to trap the adults at the nest site when ringing takes place in one or two weeks time.

The last clip shows the female outside the box, but the chorus of hisses and bill snaps is from the chicks, who either heard or saw something which alarmed them, perhaps even the female arriving at the nest.

Hunting seems to be good. One Bank Vole is offered to a chick, but it turns out it already has one. In another part of the clip, you can see the chick eat one item, while another lies uneaten at its feet. This surplus is often consumed by the chicks during the following day.

(You can hit the arrow icon in the corner for a full screen view)

Barn Owl nest camera, Co. Kerry (Video: M.O'Clery, filmed under licence from NPWS).

Good weather bodes well for Kestrels and Barn Owls

Despite last years breeding season being one of the poorest on record for Barn Owls and Kestrels, both seem to be doing well so far this summer. Although some sites were lost in summer of last year, those sites which do still have birds have brood sizes which seem to be up on previous years. 

Below, a photo from a nest box hear Tralee, where the female has four young chicks - hard to tell, but there might even be a fifth in the white mass of chick bodies huddled against their parent. 

(You can click any of the photos for a closer look)

A female Barn Owl in  nest box near Tralee, Co. Kerry. The ball of white by her side is a huddling mass of at least four young chicks, perhaps only between a week and two weeks old. A dead Bank Vole to the right shows that there is a food surplus, and hunting has been good (Photographed under licence from NPWS).

Kestrels have also done well, and family parties are now appearing away from the nest sites. Both parents will feed the free flying chicks for several weeks and as the skills of the young improve they will often fly up to meet a returning parent and to take the food from them in mid-flight.

Two young Kestrels, at a nest box near Castlegregory, Co. Kerry. They are about 4 weeks old and are already make short excursions outside the nest box. (M.O'Clery).

One of the Kestrel chicks exercising inside the nest box. The wings are just about fully grown and the two other chicks from this brood are now perching most of the time outside the box and in nearby tree branches (M.O'Clery).

A Kestrel nest site in NE Kerry, where three chicks fledged and are now noisily flying about the nest area.

 Two of the young Kestrels awaiting their parents return. They quickly become adept fliers and even at this early stage can fly up to meet a parent and take food from their talons (M.O'Clery).

Extended Kestrel nestbox footage

Screengrabs from the video below. Feeding on a rat, a Pygmy Shrew, lots of napping, scratching, nibbling and flapping, all while keeping an eye out for the next meal.

Probably the last few days in the nest box for these three young Kestrels. Two are already exploring outside the box at times, though returning quickly if they see one of the adults returning with food. As the birds preen and stretch you can see how the wing and tail feathers have almost reached full length, and much of the down feathering is now gone. The parents have been providing regular feeds to the hungry chicks, and while one is nibbling at a half eaten rat at the back of the box, another gets a fresh delivery of a Pygmy Shrew which is swallowed whole.

The oldest chick is now regularly leaving the box to stand just outside, often exercising its' wings, and it will only be a matter of a day or two before all three do so, and the eldest will be able to make short flights to nearby branches. It is likely that they will still use the box to roost for a few more nights, but as their flying abilities rapidly improve, the whole family will take off and feed in nearby areas. The parents will still attend to them away form the nest until they are able to hunt for themselves.


Three Kestrel chicks, Co. Kerry, 10th June (Filmed under licence: M.O'Clery). You can see the video full-screen by clicking on the arrow icon on the bottom right.

Neurotic neighbours - Jackdaws and Kestrels

Jackdaw - one of the commonest crows in Ireland, nesting on and in buildings, and often sharing nest sites with Kestrels (all photos: M.O'Clery).

Jackdaws are an intelligent and social species and often nest in the same old buildings as Kestrels though they have a very uneasy relationship. At this old church tower in Co. Kerry, the pair of Kestrels share their nest site with numerous Jackdaws, and both adult Kestrels were seen to be hunting nearby and delivering prey to the well-grown chicks.

The old church tower in Co. Kerry with many nesting Jackdaws throughout and nesting Kestrel on the top right of the tower (M.O'Clery).

One of the adult Kestrels will always remain at the nest until the chicks are old enough to defend themselves. The defense mechanism of young Kestrels left alone at the nest is to back as far into the nest as possible, screech loudly, and swipe at any intruder (or ringers hand) with their sharp talons with a sharp downward slashing motion. For a ringer, the experience can be like putting your hand into a bag of sharp knives, but it is obviously a sufficient deterrent to the ever-present Jackdaws, who would happily eat a young chick if they felt they could survive the experience unscathed.

As the adult Kestrels were watched delivering prey, Bank Voles were certainly on the menu. If you look at the photo below in detail (you can click on any of the images for a larger view), you can just make out the Vole in the female Kestrels' talons.

Female Kestrel, carrying a Bank Vole back to the nest.

Shortly after this prey delivery, a Jackdaw appeared on the tower with a Bank Vole in it's beak. Did it manage to brave the ferocious young raptors and steal it? While it may not be able to grab one of the chicks for a meal, it might well have been able to grab the chick's meal instead.

 Jackdaw with a Bank Vole. Did it manage to catch it itself, or steal it from the Kestrel nest?

Relocating Barn Owl shows real value of nest boxes

To the horror of surveyors today, a Barn Owl site in the roof space of a derelict cottage near Newmarket, Co. Cork – a site which has been continuously occupied by Barn Owls for twenty years or more – was found to be badly damaged by recent storms. The metal roof had been largely stripped by the violent gales, the peat roof exposed to the elements and collapsed into the building. 

The site was found to be now almost useless to the owls as a nesting site as the missing roof sections would now allow access by cats, foxes and other predators. It seemed to be the end of the owls in that area, as there was no signs of the owls and there were no other suitable nest sites nearby.

The shattered remnants of the cottage where Barn Owls nested in the roof space for two decades. The old peat roof covered with corrugated iron sheeting had provided the perfect cavity for nesting Barn Owls (all photos: M.O'Clery).

However, at one site, about 3 km away, the Duhallow Raptor Conservation Project had installed a Barn Owl nest box in a modern barn. To date, there had been few signs of any owls at the box so there was only low expectations as it was visited and a ladder put up to access the box.

Amazingly, a pale male Barn Owl flew out, and inside the box was a female and four young chicks. 

This bundle of feathers is the female Barn Owl brooding four young chicks which ranged in age from about three to ten days old. Four is a particularly good brood size for Barn Owls showing that the surrounding area has good hunting, and that the spring weather has been kind to the birds this year.

The female was found to have a metal ring GR68167 affixed to her leg, and this proved to be from an adult female Barn Owl which was caught and ringed by John Lusby at the very same cottage pictured above the previous summer.

The adult female Barn Owl, the metal ring visible on her leg.

The relocation of this female (and perhaps her male partner too) shows there is a very real value to the nest box project. Without the nest box, the barn they are now in would have had no suitable nest sites within, and there are no old or derelict buildings in the immediate area of the cottage suitable for nesting,

Instead of losing a valuable nest site to the area, by providing the nest box nearby, the birds have only had to move a few kilometres. They can hunt over much the same territory, areas with which they will long be familiar with and where they will have an intimate knowledge of the best hunting areas.

FOOTNOTE: The female Barn Owl in here was trapped at the cottage site in August 2013 and ringed. There is a video clip on the Duhallow Raptor website HERE showing the very same female, while John Lusby explains the wing moult and ageing of Barn Owls. This female was judged to be three years old, so is now four – ripe old age for a wild Barn Owl, and a true veteran.

 Wing of the female Barn Owl today, at four years of age. Though the wing looks complete, there is one secondary feather growing. The outer primaries look worn, though her plumage is a little ragged from spending the past two months in the nest box, incubating the eggs and brooding the young.

Kestrel nest visits underway

Several Kestrel nests were visited in recent days in Co. Kerry, with John Lusby, Raptor Officer with BirdWatch Ireland, ringing several broods of chicks. The first Barn Owl chicks of the year have also appeared (see below).

 This young Kestrel was one of three chicks in a nest box on the Dingle Peninsula. It is about 12 to 14 days old and about half grown.

Local participation in the conservation of raptors is vital and here, Mary-Ellen proudly shows the Kestrel chick to her grandchildren. The chick came from a nest box close to her house. Mary-Ellen keeps a close eye on activities at the nest and keeps us informed of all developments.

A new Kestrel nest site was discovered recently, at a castle in Co. Kerry. The nest was on a ledge about 12 metres up (about 25 ft), and is part of an old fireplace.

The new nest site had five eggs, so we will keep a close eye on developments. This brood is a little later than most Kestrel nest sites which, by now, contain chicks.

 Another visit, this time to a Kestrel nest in a Scots Pine, proved less fruitful. Despite climbing the tree in wind and rain, it proved to be empty. There is still a chance that the birds have chosen to nest elsewhere nearby as both male and female Kestrel were seen close by.

A quick check of a known Barn Owl site revealed four recently hatched chicks - the first detected by us this season. There is also one more egg, just visible lower left. If it should hatch, it would be the first brood of five chicks in Kerry so far. (All photos: M.O'Clery).

First Kestrel chicks of the year ringed

Five Kestrel chicks were ringed at a site near Ballyferriter, Co. Kerry, yesterday. These are the first to be ringed in Ireland this year, though several other nests now also have hatched young..

John Lusby , Raptor Conservation Officer of BirdWatch Ireland, rings one of the chicks. They are about two weeks old (Jill Crosher).

The nest box was one of several made and erected by volunteers from the West  Kerry branch of BirdWatch Ireland when their original nest site decayed. Since then five to six Kestrel chicks have been raised at this site every year. In the same barn is a barn owl nest box, though after last years dismal breeding season, there are no owls present this year. It was the only site in Ireland where these two raptor species, Kestrel and Barn Owl, bred in nest boxes in the same barn.

Three younger chicks at another nest box in Co. Kerry, near Castlegregory, yesterday (Michael O'Clery).

Free talk on Barn Owls at TBWC, Tuesday 20th

The Tralee Bay Wetlands Centre.

John Lusby, Raptor Officer for BirdWatch Ireland, will be giving a talk on The Barn Owls of Kerry

at the Tralee Bay Wetlands Centre, Tralee

On Tuesday 20th May 2014, 7.30pm.

Free and open to all.

Kerry Kestrels - a request for sightings

With the Kerry Raptor Conservation Project ongoing this year, we are requesting any sightings of Kestrels during May and June this year, particularly if they relate to possible nesting - two birds calling excitedly, birds repeatedly visiting a cliff or tree, or a Kestrel carrying food. If you see any, anywhere in Co. Kerry, please contact michaeloclery@gmail.com or text the details to 087 9711519. 

Don't underestimate the value of your sightings! By mapping occurrences we can gauge how well they are doing and may be able to locate breeding sites which we can then monitor, all of which provides valuable information in the study of this species which has been in steady decline in Ireland in recent years.

Male Kestrel (Mark Carmody).

Kestrel nest box high in a Sitka Spruce, now occupied by nesting Kestrels, near Camp, Co. Kerry, May 2014 (M.O'Clery).

With a number of Kestrel nest boxes in Kerry now occupied, we hope to continue and expand on the provision and monitoring of nest boxes this year. They are proving to be very attractive to nesting Kestrels. See how to make them and where to put them HERE.

Storms and poor breeding season take a toll on Long-eared Owls

Woodland, with Long-eared Owl nest in a tree in the middle distance, near Newmarket, Co. Cork, May 2012 (All photos: M.O'Clery).

And the same spot after the February 2014 storm...

This woodland near Newmarket in Co. Cork has taken a devastating blow from the major storm in mid-February. The Long-eared Owl nest (pictured below), which was discovered during fieldwork for the Duhallow Raptor Conservation Project in 2012, is no more. The area of woodland in which it was found was virtually flattened by the hurricane force winds, and while the actual tree in which the nest was found is still standing, all traces of the large stick nest have gone - blown out of the tree along with many of the surrounding smaller branches.

This site was also notable for several other Long-eared Owls being present simultaneously, with two males and two females calling in close proximity in spring 2012, and one male and two females in 2013. Alas, after resurveying this area a few nights ago, no owls were heard.

Other surveyors around Ireland have been visiting known sites and, while outside the SW most nests and nest trees are still intact, there seems to be no sign so far of any nesting Long-eareds. Time will tell, but at this early stage in the breeding season it looks like nesting Long-eared Owl numbers are going to be well down on previous years.

The Long-eared Owl nest, in spring 2012.

Numbers of recruits to the Long-eared Owl population are likely to be few, following a record poor breeding season last year, caused by an extremely cold spring. For more on that, see this post HERE,

and for more on the former nest site pictured above, see HERE