I appreciate that not everyone agrees with the ringing of birds. I am the holder of a Schedule 1 Licence for the Owls and Owlets that are in the box in our garden from the British Trust for Ornithology. They are asking that if you hold a licence for the box that they have issued, in the case of Barn Owls as they are so scarce, that you have the birds ringed. So on Friday the 16th of June, B.T.O. accredited ringers arrived and we opened up the box to see first hand what secrets it held, and at the end we had three Owlets all playing dead. So Andy placed them all into separate bags and they were handed down ready for ringing. After the birds had been ringed we cleaned the cameras and then returned the Owlets to have some peace and the adults to return and feed them. It has been very hot the last few days and the Owlets are certainly feeling the warmth and when looking on the cameras they are panting with the heat but we are hoping no harm will come to them.
All the images of the adult birds are taken over a considerable distance and heavily cropped, I also use a hide so as to conceal myself.
A big thank you to Chris and Andy for ringing the birds and to Kate and Rhys for helping prior to ringing in putting the scaffold tower in place.
All the images of the adult birds are taken over a considerable distance and heavily cropped, I also use a hide so as to conceal myself.
A big thank you to Chris and Andy for ringing the birds and to Kate and Rhys for helping prior to ringing in putting the scaffold tower in place.
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Adult Female just coming out of Box. Both the male and female are both hunting to feed the young, she tends to leave the box and return with some food and then stay with the Owlets and lets the male carry on hunting. |
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Here returning with what appears to be a vole. |
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Not a good image but you can see two Owlets. |
THE RINGING,
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Andy opens up the box for the first time and has a chat with the Owlets. |
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First Owlets removed from the box. |
And the second.
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Third is placed into a bag prior to being lowered down for ringing. |
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First Owlet to be Ringed. Ring No. GN 75630 I always find it amazing how the birds are so calm and totally relaxed. |
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Second Owlet to be Ringed. Ring No. GR41961. |
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Third Owlet to be Ringed. Ring No. GR 41962. |
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The three all together before being returned into the box. I hope you have enjoyed your visit as much as I did in the getting of the images. unfortunately I am still not feeling well, but hopefully all will be sorted later in the week. |
Beautiful Barn Owl and the 3 owlets, all of them ringed. Well done John.
ReplyDeleteHi Bob and such a wonderful thing to have these birds in our garden, shame you don't live any closer. So pleased we got them ringed, always get nervous in case the adults decide not to return but they always do, I suppose the tie is so strong. All the best, John
DeleteLas primeras fotos de la lechuza posada delante de la caja nido son excelentes, gran trabajo el que estáis haciendo con esta magnífica especie. Enhorabuena John, all the best from Spain.
ReplyDeleteHola German Y gracias por su comentario, para que usted diga que las fotos son excelentes es una verdadera alabanza. Ha sido tan agradable tener estos pajaros en nuestro jardin, gracias de nuevo. All the best from England. John
DeleteI'm so pleased that you've got the owls to keep you occupied whilst you are unwell, John. How wonderful that you've had a successful breeding after a couple of barren years. Your getting some great results with your photographic set-up now.
ReplyDeleteHoping to see you soon - it's been a very long time! Best wishes for a speedy recovery now - - - Richard
HI Richard and welcome back, sounds as if you had a good time in Scotland, Thank the lord I have had the Barn Owls to keep me occupied, must admit I have not always felt up to it. Makes such a difference using a tripod with these big heavy lenses. Look forward to meeting up again. Lets hope the docs are helpful Friday. See you soon. John
DeleteWhat a lovely trio! So glad the ringing went well - very interesting. Great shots of adults too. Sorry you are still under the weather, you must be very frustrated . See you soon? M
ReplyDeleteHi Margaret and frustrated isn't the word!! would just love to go out where ever I wanted and see some birds, Glad you liked our trio, they are really coming on, the adults are busy of an evening feeding the growing brood, but unfortunately they are still not arriving till late, see you both soon, John
ReplyDeleteThe rings of owls and other birds also serve a purpose.
ReplyDeleteSome may not agree, but you will know more about the life of the owl.
Beautiful pictures and the little church owls are very nice to see.
Sincerely, Helma
Hi Helma and thank you for the visit. I think with the Barn Owls it's most important as its the only way its possible to track the movement without extreme expenditure with trackers. The young are hardly beautiful, only a mother could love them!! All the best, John
ReplyDeleteGlorious captures, John! And your header is stunning and delightful! :)
ReplyDeleteHello Linda and thank you for your visit and comment. So pleased you have enjoyed the Barn Owls all the way from Canada. We had a visitor two years ago from Canada to see the Owls. All the best to you. John
ReplyDeleteThose are great looking owlets John. Nice you were there to take these great captures of them. Hope you feel a bit better.
ReplyDeleteTake care,
Roos
Hi Roos and thank you for the visit, It was wonderful to get the images of the Owlets whilst out of the box, they are not what you would call cute but the parents are obviously deeply in love with them. Hope you are feeling better and you take care, all the best, John
ReplyDeleteHi John,
ReplyDeleteLovely post, and I well understand the ringing of these babies since without the box they might not have existed!
You must have been thrilled to take these pictures for your post, I congratulate you for the this wonderful success!
I hope these owlets will be fine and the temperatures have gone down in the UK.
Where were you to have Bulbuls tapping on your windows???
Many thanks for your lovely comments while I was in the Indian ocean, a great trip but much too short!!
I would like to back to the Reunion island and Madagascar with an ornitho group next year in september... If you're interested, let me know ;-)
Kind regards :)
Hi Noushka and welcome back, looks as if you have had a wonderful time. It has been a really wonderful time with these Barn Owls, how many people can say they have them in the garden. The weather has gone the other way and the heat has gone and the rain has taken over but I saw the adults last night feeding the young so I'm sure all is well. We have seen Bearded Bulbul and White Bearded Bulbul {not the wonderful colourful birds you have images from} from Senegal all the way down to Togo, but I understand they go as far South as Gabon, they are still lovely birds but not so flashy. As much as I would love to join you on a visit to what appears to be a delightful area, with my wife being poorly, at the moment this is not possible. You look after yourself. John
DeleteHi John!!! Barn Owl is absolutely adorable and the chickens so cute.. :-)))
ReplyDeleteLovely post and congrats for your good work.. Have a nice weekend..
Hi Ana, the Barn Owls have been a wonderful distraction the last few weeks, it was so good to see the Owlets when being ringed and it also meant we could clean the cameras in the box so we are getting better pictures on the television. You have a good weekend, All the best, John
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness John, when I saw the owl on Google, I thought I had already left you a message, but see that I didn't. My apologies! I would have been sad to miss these. A tremendous series of the most delightful photographs. Thank you so much for sharing them. I can see I will be back again to view these little darlings. You are doing such great work and I adore your photos.
ReplyDeleteHi Denise, and thank you for the visit, I told you that you had gone in the wrong direction when going on holiday, with the distance you travelled you could have seen the Owls. The young are growing at such a rate and two of the birds look like Barn Owls, not white fluffy balls anymore. It has been really wonderful to have Barn Owls back in our garden and has kept me reasonably sane. Glad you have enjoyed the visit. All the best, John
ReplyDeleteI am taking part regularly in a bird banding programme, John, and we have had a nice range of species, but I would trade them all for one crack at your Barn Owls!
ReplyDeleteHi Both, I always get very nervous that the adults will abandon the box, which they never do, and its wonderful to see the Owlets. You have to be very careful with the young, they are very handy with the talons even at a young age as several people have found out. All the best, John
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