Tawny Owls

Hello

For some of us the day was dominated by one species - the Tawny Owl!

Chris and John were down at Greens Norton and checked an owl box to find an attendant female Tawny Owl and her two well-grown chicks, all of which were ringed and left as a family unit. At Pitsford Reservoir Pete and I checked several boxes. In one box there were two small young and the female was at home too. She was already ringed and it transpires that she is 17 years old after being initially ringed as a chick in May 2004! Since then she has been encountered on three occasions over the years. In another box there were two well-grown youngsters and they were duly ringed.

The longevity record for Tawny Owl is apparently 23 years, 5 months and 27 days but the average life-span is thought to be four years so the re-trap female at Pitsford is doing rather well!

Also today the floating rafts at Pitsford Reservoir were checked and held a record 43 Black-headed Gull nests with eggs so hopefully they are going to have a bumper year!

The Cattle Egret remained at Pitsford Reservoir today, still in the meadow between Maytrees Hide and the causeway and butterflies on the wing included plenty of Orange-tips.

Thrapston Pits again hosted an Osprey today plus two Hobbies, a day hunting Barn Owl, a Great White Egret and a singing Nightingale plus the two pairs of Oystercatchers and three Cuckoos.

The Spotted Redshank put in an appearance on the scrape again at Summer Leys LNR and a male Ruff was there too. Three Whimbrel remained at Clifford Hill Pits. A small unidentified egret was seen distantly in flight over fields near Arthingworth this evening.

On the insect front there were Dingy Skippers and a Small Heath on the wing at Twywell Hills and Dales Country Park and Large Red Damselflies and Banded Demoiselles were spotted at Whitemills Marina, Earls Barton.

Regards

Neil M

The female Tawny Owl and her two youngsters
at Greens Norton courtesy of Chris Payne.

The 17 year old Tawny Owl and
a chick from Pitsford Reservoir
courtesy of Pete Gilbert.

Orange-tip butterfly
courtesy of Pete Gilbert.

The Pitsford Cattle Egret
courtesy of Pete Gilbert.