Barn owls have had a bumper summer in County Fermanagh, with 10 chicks recorded across two sites. The breeding success follows years of conservation work by Ulster Wildlife with local farmers installing nest boxes and improving habitat for the elusive bird. There are thought to be fewer than 30 breeding pairs left in Northern Ireland.
The chicks have had rings placed on their legs so that they can be recorded in any other areas they turn up in after leaving the nest. People are being encouraged to report any sightings of barn owls across Northern Ireland, particularly in the west, to help fill in gaps in the records and even help protect important breeding areas. The Fermanagh chicks are thought to be the first recorded ones in the county for half a century.
Most of Ulster Wildlife's barn owl records come from the east of Northern Ireland. The two broods of five chicks appeared in nest boxes that had been installed at different sites, after more than a decade of work with landowners. The locations are being kept secret to help protect the rare, locally endangered bird.
Katy Bell, a senior conservation officer from Ulster Wildlife, said nest boxes play a part, but the willingness of farmers to adapt to the needs of the "magical, mystical" barn owl has been important too. "We've been working closely with landowners, advising on land management and also putting up boxes," she said. "So it's the combination of both - really you need nice thick hedgerows, lots of kind of rough areas and long grass for them to hunt over and then somewhere for them to nest.
And that's really exciting." The charity has worked closely with BirdWatch Ireland and has seen the population start to spread up from County Cavan. The chicks have had small identification rings placed round their legs so that they can be traced when they are spotted again. It is the first time chicks are known to have been ringed under licence from the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, with support from the British Trust for Ornithology.
Over the past 50 years, barn owl numbers have declined across the UK. The birds are now red-listed - classified as being at risk of extinction - largely due to a loss of habitat but also the use of pesticide. Bell has been closely involved in the project to support barn owls.
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