Another Replacement box.

We replaced one of our oldest boxes (from 2000) on the banks of the River Dane today with a shiny new one. There were a pair of owls roosting in the adjacent box and so it shouldn't be too long before this one is put to good use.

Mixed News

I received details today of one of my birds being found dead near to the M6/M56 Interchange; I had ringed the bird as a first year male last June on a farm about 3km from where it was discovered.


A call from my mate Roy confirmed that the pair of Kestrels have returned to one of our boxes where they have bred for the last few years. They raised four young last year (pictured below) and I hope to be ringing another healthy brood in June.

Sad news

I received a call this evening from Phil, a farmer in Appleton. Unfortunately, whilst removing some bales of straw, he had found a dead Barn Owl in one of his barns. Perhaps the harsh winter claimed another victim; although, in Barn Owl terms, he had lived quite a long life.

I had ringed the bird as a breeding male in 2008 (when I had estimated him to be in his second year) and he had managed to father successful broods in each subsequent year.

What remains to be seen is whether or not the female manages to attract another male or if she will leave the farm in order to breed elsewhere. Time will tell.