Room with a view for owl friends
I enjoyed reading the article in The Timaru Herald recently about Alister Thornley, president of the Friends of the Timaru Botanic Gardens group, and his owl house.
While out walking the Thornleys had noticed several little brown owls sitting atop the gravestones in our cemetery.
With the removal of the stand of pine trees near the edge of Saltwater Creek in preparation for replacement native planting, it is possible that they’ve lost their nesting sites. A long-time fan of owls, Alister turned his mind to finding a housing solution.
What is needed for an owl house? Owls are cavity nesters so, as a trial, Alister designed an enclosed water-tight nesting box made from treated plywood topped with a tiled roof. A cosy room with a view, a small branch outside for any fledglings to sit on, securely attached and out of harm’s way.
It has since been placed in a suitable spot and, if successful, more will be dotted about the tall trees in the gardens to provide an alternative home for our owl population.
They prefer farmland and urban areas to forested areas – they hunt at dawn and dusk, often feeding on the ground where they walk, and run freely – so a stand of trees that borders an open area is perfect.
Between 1906 and 1910 a total of 219 little brown owls were imported and released by the Otago Acclimatisation Society into New Zealand. The finches and sparrows that had been introduced earlier had flourished and were causing havoc with fruit and grain crops.
The intention of introducing the owls was that they would limit these troublesome populations.
A few subsequent releases into Canterbury, after the initial imports, have ensured there is a fairly wide distribution in the drier eastern and coastal regions.
Only found in the South Island, sometimes as far north as Nelson, they are rare on the West Coast.
We share our city with the wild creatures – we plant trees to encourage native birds to visit our gardens and feel privileged when they do. We enjoy the sight of dolphins in Caroline Bay, penguins living in our rocks and seals resting and sunning on our shores.
Let’s hope the house built for little brown owls proves appealing and our population of these endearing birds increases.
Many families love living in Timaru – it’s a pleasing corner of the world to be in. But it’s always good to be reminded that not all the families that share our community are human. – Karen Rolleston Sir Henry Rushbury Bomb Damage Saint Pauls, 1942 Aigantighe Art Gallery Collection This watercolour painting, Timaru Harbour, 1888, by Rudolph Haig depicts Timaru’s harbour 10 years after the first foundations for a breakwater were laid.
It looks south across the stretch of water now occupied by Caroline Bay’s beach and grassed areas, from a viewpoint at the top of what is today Virtue Ave.
In 1888, Caroline Bay’s beach had yet to form beyond a small stretch of shingle at the base of the cliffs. It was the construction of the harbour to the south that began the natural deposit of sand that built up north of the harbour.
To the delight of residents, a small bathing beach was forming at Caroline Bay in the 1890s, and has continued to grow ever since.
The artist has endeavoured to show a number of features of that war caused to everyday life away from the horrors of the battlefield.
Bomb Damage Saint Pauls, 1942, depicts the aftermath of a Nazi air raid that took place during World War II. The etching shows a view of St Pauls Cathedral, which was hit in an attack on London in 1940.
Fortunately, despite some damage to the building’s high altar, it escaped major, irredeemable damage and became something of a symbol of British resilience against Timaru in the 1880s. While the perspective may not be entirely accurate, the viewer can take in Timaru’s skyline, including the distinctive Parr’s Windmill, located at the eastern end of Elizabeth St.
Of all the buildings shown, only Timaru’s lighthouse still remains, although no longer on its original site above the harbour. Haig has also added the view of a train crossing the rail bridge, now the Bay Viaduct.
This painting is on show in the Painted Memories exhibition at the South Canterbury Museum.