Early in June, a man who had loaded his lorry with straw bales reached his destination and was about to unload his cargo when he heard chirping sounds. On investigation, he found four little pink chicks between the bales. Luckily, he rushed them to Secret World Wildlife Rescue, where he discovered that they were four newly-hatched Barn owl chicks, cold, featherless and very vulnerable.
Secret World carers gave the chicks a quick inspection and placed them in an incubator to gently warm them. Unfortunately, the youngest was very weak and sadly soon died. The remaining three were passed into the care of Trudi Holwell, an experienced Secret World owl-rearer, who had cared for many wildlife orphans, but never Barn owls so young. Trudi, at first, had to feed them with small pieces of meat, several times a day, using tweezers. Under her care, they soon began to develop white fuzzy down and continued to grow. Once they were able to feed themselves, they were still given food, but with as little human contact as possible.
It was important to identify a suitable site for their eventual release into the wild. Tristan Cooper, the Secret World Release Manager, contacted André Fournier who has, for over twenty years, been leading a Barn Owl conservation project for Cam Valley Wildlife Group based in the Midsomer Norton and Radstock area. Over the years, the Group has developed a network of over 100 farmers and other landowners who have agreed to let the Group erect and monitor nest boxes on their land.
André soon identified an ideal farm for their release, complete with a very helpful farmer and lots of good Barn Owl habitat. He arranged for Tristan and Trudi to visit and confirm suitability. The farm had breeding Barn Owls in the past, but not for the last few years. A nest box was already in place in a barn and there were a dozen more nestboxes not currently in use on other nearby farms, so maximising opportunity for the young owls when they were released. The farmer was very happy to allow construction of a temporary aviary, where the young owls could learn to fly and develop natural behaviours until they were ready to be released back into the wild.
Meanwhile, a fourth Barn Owl chick, about the same age as the other three, had been taken into Secret Word. Trudi successfully managed to integrate it with the others, so they could all be released together.
On Tuesday, 27th September, Tristan and Bill from Secret World arrived at the farm with the kit form temporary aviary which was erected with help from André and Gary from Cam Valley Wildlife Group and the farmer. The aviary was 7x2 metres and fitted with two nest boxes, perches, feeding station and freshly cut branches.
Next day, Trudi brought the four owls to the farm, along with a food supply of dead mice and chicks. The food would be kept in a freezer and the farmer would place a few in the aviary each day to provide food for the young owls while they were kept in the aviary acclimatising to their surroundings. Trudi released the owls from their carriage boxes and after the expected initial panic, they soon settled into their new surroundings.
For the next two weeks, food was placed in the aviary each day. Other than that, human presence in the area of the aviary was avoided, so that the owls would feel more self-dependent. On Wednesday, 12th October, as dusk fell, the aviary hatch was opened to at last allow the four owls to fly free. By the morning, all four had left the aviary. It may be that they will remain at the release site for a period before seeking their own territory and hopefully pairing up to breed, so food will continue to be put out for the next two weeks.
This has been the first time that Secret World and Cam Valley Wildlife Group have worked together in this way, and I feel sure it will not be the last. Combining knowledge and expertise and working with such a wildlife friendly farm owner has been an object lesson in teamwork. A second similar exercise to release a fifth Barn Owl at another site in the Cam Valley area is already underway.
André Fournier