Despite being widespread, we know surprisingly little about
our Tawny Owl population. The BTO’s core monitoring schemes do suggest a recent
decline at the UK level but usual daytime surveys can’t show the full picture for this normally nocturnal species.
So, from 15th
August to 15th October, the BTO will be running a survey of Tawny
Owls across Britain, to compare the current population with that of previous national
surveys carried out in 1989 and 2005.
By extending the survey to multiple seasons there are also plans
to look at changes in the Tawny Owl population over the course of the year and
compare it to productivity and survival recorded by other BTO monitoring
projects like the Nest Record Scheme and Ringing Scheme. Through this survey, it is hoped
to learn much more about these noisy but often mysterious neighbours.
To find out more, and how you can get involved, follow the
link to the BTO survey page here.