A field in Shropshire, England
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It’s not always bucolic beauty at Tipton’s Croft. Here’s part of the field after completing some essential drainage work. We’ll take the opportunity to spread some more wildflower seeds on the bare ground and in six months time it will look even better than it did before.
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A late season cut of hay from the meadow (so that the wildflowers have had a chance to seed). Only twenty bales this year, due to the dry spring but it’s good to have the field being productive as well as being an oasis for wildlife.
Hiding in one of the outbuildings one night last week. See, it’s not all about barn owls!
The two fledgling stock doves couldn’t get out of the barn owl nest box (due to the entrance being too high up) so we took the side off to help them. Here’s one of them mustering up enough courage to make its first flight. Its nervousness may be partly related to the nest box being about twelve feet off the ground.
You can just make out the other fledgling on a branch next to the nest box. It had just made its first flight and was encouraging its sibling.
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The barn owl is getting a little more confident, coming out of the nest box earlier in the evening to have a good look around before flying off for the night.
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The empty nest didn’t stay empty for long. We only just had time to renovate the second owl box before this beautiful specimen arrived. He (or she, we can’t tell yet) is unlikely to be one of the youngsters who recently dispersed, may be one of the adults (though we haven’t seen them for months) or more likely a new owl seeking out its own territory.
After reviewing the video we think likely a new owl – the way it takes an interest in the camera makes us think it hasn’t seen one before.
And on even more reviewing, we think it is a female – the darker tail and a glimpse of black spots on the white chest. We’re going to set up a second camera on the outside of the nest box which should give a better view.
A few days ago we left food out for the barn owls for the last time: if they didn’t come for it we knew they had dispersed. The food didn’t go to waste though: the next morning a greedy buzzard saw to that.
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At last the two owlets have dispersed. They started coming back less and less during the night as they grew more confident and able to hunt for themselves, and we now haven’t seen them for over two weeks. They’re out there somewhere: perhaps the next time you see a barn owl it might be one of them.
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It’s hard to tell if they’re not hunting well, or they just like free food, but they keep coming back to the nest box. We’re only putting food out every third night and they don’t hang around all the night, but should we cut down more and force them to cope on they’re own? The daft pair of wobbleheads need to get their act together.
It’s the season for caterpillars of all sorts (though we could do without the Large Whites on our cabbages).
