Well, owl be! Barn hooters are battling back
HOPE is the thing with feathers – the barn owl population in Cork is recovering to numbers not seen for 50 years, an encouraging survey has found.
A study of the bird – known as ‘the farmer’s friend’ as it feeds on rats and mice – in Co. Cork shows numbers have more than doubled in the past decade and are up nearly 500% since the 1980s.
The survey by BirdWatch Ireland, along with Cork County Council and the National Parks and Wildlife Service, ‘provides cause for optimism’.
The population increase ‘has been truly incredible to witness’ according to BirdWatch Ireland’s Alan McCarthy, who coordinated the survey.
However, he admitted: ‘The reasons behind their recent population increases are not fully understood since many of the threats to barn owls such as habitat loss and rodenticide poisoning still remain. Changes in barn owl numbers may be related to the continued spread of introduced small mammal species throughout Cork, which barn owls feed on. It is therefore important we do not become complacent.’
The erection of nest boxes has helped, as ‘40% of recorded nests were in nest boxes in 2023’, he said.
BirdWatch volunteer Donncha Ó Teangana, said: ‘We met so many farmers and landowners who were extremely positive and engaging when it came to barn owl conservation. It is fantastic to see this engagement being rewarded with many barn owls now taking up residence in nest boxes we have installed in the last few years throughout east Cork. Fingers crossed this trend continues in the years to come.’
Barn owls were widespread throughout the county in the late 1960s, but 20 years later the numbers had plummeted, and their range had dwindled significantly. However, the survey showed a 132% increase in the breeding range in Cork over the past 10 years, an increase of 480% since the 1980s. A total of 114 nesting sites were found in the county, mostly in abandoned buildings.