Nestboxes

It was time to re-visit several of the owl nestboxes here at Foxglove this morning in the hopes the chicks would now be big enough to ring.  Owls are not the only species to take up residence in these; Jackdaws, Kestrels and Squirrels are also sometimes found.

Ten Jackdaw chicks were ringed this morning, it was interesting to see the differences in the development of the chicks with some almost ready to fledge, some in pin like below, and some still with no feathers.

Owls have been having a very hard time hunting this year, the small mammal population has been hit hard by the relentless wet weather over the past 18 months.  It was good to find healthy chicks in the boxes, though they are growing slower than usual reflecting the shortage of food.

Unusually this mother was reluctant to leave her nestbox as we approached and we were lucky enough to get a picture of her brooding her chicks!