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).