Tipton's Croft

A field in Shropshire, England

Month: December 2019

  • No question about it

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    Say hello to Mr Tawny. A brief visit to check out the barn owl nest box, but not suitable for a woodland owl.

  • It’s a tawny

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    Little doubt this time, different markings compared to a barn owl. Only one so far, hopefully the other is hiding in the nest box.

  • Barn owl or tawny?

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    We heard a tawny hooting last night and these two photos are from the new owl box. Photos aren’t clear but we think a tawny is taking over this box while the barn owls are nesting in the old one. We hope they all get on.

  • Hooty update

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    They’re spending more time around the nest box, though not staying in it during the day. A lot of winter to go yet before they nest properly, but it’s looking good so far.

  • Settling in

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    It’s been a couple of weeks and the two barn owls are still hanging around. They’re sleeping somewhere else most days but at night are still taking a great interest in the nest box, so hopefully it fits their requirements for the spring.

  • Weasel or stoat?

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    We think weasel – quite small, but we couldn’t see the tail which would have decided things.

    (just its head showing in centre of blurry photo)

  • Nap time

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    Hooty’s settling in and currently having a well-earned nap.

  • Hooty’s back!

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    And not just one but two: after a year of empty nests we now have a pair of barn owls taking an interest in the old nest box. We’re going to give them plenty of peace and quiet while they settle in. There’s a lot of winter ahead for them but the field is ready, with plenty of scrubland for hunting.

    A word of caution though: these two do look like barn owls, but over the past few days we’ve seen distant brief glimpses a pair of what we think were tawny owls (appearing darker than barn owls and more typical behaviour) so we may or may not have those too. Not sure the field is bigger enough for both.