Owl Breeding Season

Friday, May 3rd 2019

Owls are one of the first birds to breed in this area and so the bird ringers are busy monitoring the one hundred plus large wooden nesting boxes on the training area that surrounds the reserve. The adult birds are checked first to see if they have already been ringed, if not then they are fitted with a BTO (British Trust for Ornithology) ring on their right leg. They are then aged and sexed and the data is all recorded for the BTO before they are carefully returned to the nestbox.

The most common owls apart from Barn Owls are Tawny Owls. Although they don't seem to move very far from where they were born (An adult Tawny retrapped on Thursday night last week had been breeding in the same box since 2009), other information can be gleaned from ringing them. Longevity is one example and some of the Tawny Owls that are ringed by the Swaledale Ringing Team are older than thirteen years.

Once the adults have been ringed then the nest is checked. In many cases, the ringers need to return again a few weeks later. However, this year some already have large youngsters like this healthy trio below.

All of this is hard work, involving a lot of logistics, a tall ladder, some thick gloves and a good head for heights!

Back at Foxglove, the preparations for the Bank Holiday weekend continued with the filling of all bird feeders. There seems to be a lot of activity at the moment so maybe some song birds are already feeding their young too.

In the ponds, the Toad tadpoles are developing well and are clustering together, most likely for warmth in the cooler temperatures of the last couple of days.

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Access to the Reserve: OPEN with limited access

Monday 18th March 2024 |

The reserve is now open, although again with limited access.

Visitors will be able to access the reserve with the use of key fobs provided at the pass office upon entrance to the camp, or will be provided entrance and exit through the access gate by an officer from the camp Guard Room. In this case visitors will need a mobile phone to call the Guard Room when they wish to exit the reserve.

Please be aware that due to these circumstances, entering and leaving the reserve might take a little longer than usual.