Countryside count to help threatened birds
NATURE LOVERS are being asked to record where and when they see or hear an owl in Nidderdale as conservationists try to establish the strength of local populations.
The mainly nocturnal hunters are thought to have started to decline in numbers as far back as the mid-1800s due to persecution by gamekeepers, egg collectors and birds shot for taxidermy.
Over the course of the last century, more intensive farming practices, increased road mortalities and the loss of traditional nesting sites are thought to have continued to contribute to declining numbers, the Barn Owl Trust reports.
Now, an Owl Watch campaign being run by the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty as part of its wider lottery-funded The Wild Watch project, aims to get a grip on the true picture of local owl numbers.
Alice Crosby, project officer at The Wild Watch, said: “Numbers of owls are falling and nationally there is very little data on where they are. We’re asking people to pick up our postcards which will be in GP surgeries, shops and in school book bags across Nidderdale AONB, and return them Freepost to tell us where they see or hear an owl.”
People are also being encouraged to tweet owl sightings using the #tweettwho hashtag.
The project is backed by nature writer Miriam Darlingon.
She said people who take part will broaden their knowledge and enjoy the effects of getting out into the countryside, whilst also benefiting the protection of owls species.