Pensthorpe Barn Owl Box Success

August 2007. Barn owl and Tawny owl boxes, made by Fakenham High School Students for Pensthorpe Nature Reserve, have already proved their worth. The six Barn owl and four Tawny owl boxes, erected in March on the 500 acre reserve, are all occupied and one of the boxes is currently home to two baby owlets.

Norfolk is one of the Barn owl’s last strongholds in the UK. The species has declined dramatically, down to 7,000 birds, due to loss of prime habitat – meadows and wetland – and nesting sites like hollow trees and barns. Pensthorpe’s new boxes are part of a programme in the Wensum Valley to conserve this endangered species. Ringing
All owlets at Pensthorpe are ringed by John Middleton, a registered British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) ringer and volunteer for the Barn Owl Trust. Mr Middleton dedicates much of his spare time to working for Barn owls. Ringing the birds helps monitor the territory used by the owls, along with causes of death.

Andrew Reeve, Pensthorpe Park Manager said; ‘The boxes provided by Fakenham High School for Pensthorpe are an important part of providing safe nesting and roosting sites for this endangered species. Barn owls are particularly prone to being road casualties due to their habit of hunting along roadside verges, which hold an abundance of their favourite prey, small mammals such as voles. Barn owls only weigh up to 500gms and are easily swept into traffic by the turbulence caused by passing vehicles. The survival rate of Barn owls in their first year is less than 30%.’

Click here for more about Pensthorpe.