Barn Owl in trouble
That the Arctic weather is taking its toll on Barn Owls is beyond doubt – since the 1st December the Ringing Office have received 54 recoveries of dead Barn Owls – 31 of those in the last week alone - all of them attributed to the cold.
To put this in perspective, 42 Barn Owl recoveries were received during the whole of December 2009 and 32 in December 2008. We still have 8 days to go before the end of the month, by which time the recovery rate could be well over 100 birds.
We also know that as a result of the cold birds are piling into our gardens to find warm places to spend the night – 34 Wrens bedded down together in one garden in Devon, whilst Blue Tits, Great Tits and House Sparrows have all been recorded using nest boxes as overnight roosts across the country.
All of these birds will expend a huge amount of energy keeping warm overnight and will be more than ready for a hearty breakfast soon after first light – making food available in our gardens will ensure they don’t have to travel too far to get one, thereby saving precious energy for the day and night to come.
Some of the high-energy foods that we could put out at this time include, fat cakes and fat balls, sunflower hearts and mealworms – it is also essential to provide clean water, as natural watering holes may well be frozen. Keeping feathers in tip-top condition is vital to maintain their insulating properties. So spare a thought for your feathered friends during the freezing weather.