Page 4 - Natural World Spring 2018
P. 4

UK NEWS                                                                                                  The owls declined
                                                                                                                             due to loss of hunting
                         Essex barn                                                                                          habitat and nest sites
                         owls bounce
                         back

                          Sustained effort by volunteers and
                          landowners proves to be the right
                          formula for success

                         Barn owls in Essex are returning to    “We are thrilled with the numbers            Russell Savory  Project facts
                         many of their former haunts,         of barn owl chicks that have been
andy rouse/2020vision    thanks to a multi-partner project    ringed,” said Emma Ormond, Living                               Chicks ringed
                         led by Essex Wildlife Trust.         Landscapes Co-ordinator. “Thank
                                                              you to all the volunteers, landowners                          2017 85
                           Now in its fifth year, the Essex   and businesses who make the                                    2016 55
                         Barn Owl Project is run by two       project such a success. With their                             2015 24
                         Trust staff, 50 volunteers and 160   help we are starting to provide vital
                         landowners. The volunteers advise    information that will help beloved                              Adults ringed
                         landowners, build nest boxes, and    barn owls on a national scale.”
                         monitor their use. The landowners                                                                   2017 51
                         provide suitable hunting and                                   A box at Stow Maries                 2016 26
                         breeding sites. Businesses                                        Aerodrome, south-                 2015 11
                         and corporate sponsors                                            east of Chelmsford
                         have also generously                                                                                 Boxes occupied
                         donated materials.
                                                                                                                             2017 40
                           The project launched to                                                                           (from 183 boxes inspected)
                         help reverse the dramatic                                                                           2016 26
                         decline of barn owls across                                                                         (from 126 boxes inspected)
                         the country. Five years on,                                                                         2015 16
                         more than 260 nest boxes                                                                            (from 72 boxes inspected)
                         have been installed and
                         164 chicks have been
                         ringed. Boxes have also
                         been successfully occupied
                         by the likes of tawny owls,
                         stock doves and mallard
                         ducks.

scottish wildlife trust   Idyllic: the                                                                                       UK beavers are
                          beaver release                                                                                     getting established
                          site at Knapdale
                                                                                                                             After the Scottish Government’s
                       4 NATURAL WORLD spring 2018                                                                           2016 announcement that European
                                                                                                                             beavers would be a protected
                                                                                                                             species, three new animals have
                                                                                                                             been added to the original group
                                                                                                                             released in Knapdale Forest, Argyll.
                                                                                                                             The aim is to improve the
                                                                                                                             population’s genetic diversity. Other
                                                                                                                             Wildlife Trust beaver projects in
                                                                                                                             Kent, Scotland, Devon and Wales
                                                                                                                             are also gaining support.
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