The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Smallholding => Wildlife => Topic started by: moprabbit on February 22, 2019, 01:56:51 pm
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Last year all the swallows in our stables lost their entire brood of young due to a little owl getting through the 'ribbons' we'd put on the doors to try and stop him/her getting in. This year we are going to have to try something different to stop the owl but not the swallows. Just wondered if anyone had any ideas as to what we could do? Thank you
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Swallows can get in through a horizontal slit about 1"-1 1/2" wide which should be small enough to keep out the owl, although not if you have to keep the stable doors open. Can you put mesh over the doors? Lucky you having little owls!
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Thanks for your reply Fleecewife. I think we are going to try putting up some sort of netting/mesh, obviously nothing that any bird could get stuck in. Might also try dangling CD''s around which might put the owl off.
On the other hand, yes we are lucky to have the owls. They're very feisty little birds and have been around here for a long time. I think the main problem last year was that it was so dry, they were unable to feed on things like earthworms as the soil was rock hard.
Anyway I hope this year, we get the swallows and owls breeding as usual, but the young owls being fed on worms rather than baby swallows!
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Won't CDs scare the swallows too? Are the little owls out and about in daylight? (I've never seen them :( )
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We were thinking of putting the CD''s near where the owl perches to try and dissaude him that way, so not to frighten the swallows.
They are about during the day time and at the minute are getting very vocal, ready for mating I guess!
We're also lucky to have tawny owls and the occasional barn owl as well.
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Why interfere? There's a lot more swallows in the country than little owls (in summer at least!) and they're just doing their thing, just nature. I know it seems a bit sad when we watch parent birds racing back and forth with beaks of insects for them to then get eaten, but it's the way of things. I love little owls and swallows!