Science & Tech · Science & Environment · 2 hrs ago
Ringed barn owls will help assess wildlife-friendly farming
Barn owls on National Trust farmland are being ringed so researchers can identify individual birds over time.
The work involves tenant farmers who manage the land with wildlife in mind.
They maintain longer grass, hedgerows and patches of scrub, which provide habitat for voles and other small mammals that barn owls eat.
Ringing can show whether a bird has moved between nest boxes, something that is difficult to determine from observation alone.
Long-term monitoring will help assess whether these measures work and guide improvements to land management.
The ringing was carried out under a special licence and follows British Trust for Ornithology guidance.
Because barn owls are a protected breeding species, disturbing them during the breeding season without a licence is illegal.
Ringed barn owls will be monitored to assess whether wildlife-friendly farming measures are effective.
National Trust tenant farmers are managing land with longer grass, maintained hedgerows and patches of scrub.
These habitats support voles and other small mammals that barn owls rely on.
Bird ringer Kate Fox said ringing provides scientific data that cannot be gained from observation alone.
The ringing was carried out under a special licence and follows British Trust for Ornithology guidance.
- Who
- Barn owls were ringed, with the work carried out by licensed bird ringer and ornithologist Kate Fox and others.
- What
- The birds will be monitored to assess the effectiveness of wildlife-friendly farming measures.
- When
- Not stated.
- Where
- Not stated.
- Why
- To measure how effective habitat management is and improve it, while gathering scientific data about individual birds.
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- Land management
- Longer grass, maintained hedgerows and patches of scrub
- Food sources
- Voles and other small mammals
- Ringing
- Carried out under a special licence
- Guidance
- British Trust for Ornithology
- Legal status
- Barn owls are a Schedule 1 breeding species
What people are saying
Ringing provides invaluable scientific data about these birds, which can't be gained from observations alone.
These habitats support the voles and other small mammals that barn owls rely on.
Sources
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