Recovered owls set free

This video is about young barn owls at a nest box.

Warden Wicher Pen writes today that five young owls, which had to be cared for in a bird rehabilitation center in Zundert in the Netherlands, have been freed on 11 July 2016 on Goeree Overflakkee island.

At the moment, there are 85 barn owl nest boxes at farms on that island. The farmers like them, also because the owls catch mice. This year, barn owls nested in 22 of the boxes. So far, about 60 young owls have fledged. As barn owls may nest twice a year, that number may still increase.

On 11 July, people brought a young female barn owl to an empty nest box. The same day, she already caught mice at that farm. Maybe next spring she will nest there.

Four long-eared owls were freed in a woodland. These young birds had probably been left alone by their parents, and had been reared in Zundert.

Owls are some of the most fascinating and mysterious raptors in the world. While many people know a little bit about these birds of prey, some facts about owls can surprise even the most experienced birders: here.