We are often asked questions on how to attract owls into gardens. Owls are an apex predator, who require quite a large territory to find enough food for themselves, and any offspring they may produce. Whilst putting up nest boxes can encourage them, if there’s nothing for them to eat, then they won’t stay long.
Here’s some handy tips on how you can encourage more wildlife into your garden, which may result in some owls!
KEEP IT WILD! Leave areas of your garden untidy and overgrown, which will provide food and shelter for a number of invertebrate species. We are supporters of #NoMowMay, where gardeners are encouraged not to cut the lawn for the month of May. This allows many important pollinator friendly flowers to actually flower, and set seed for the following year. It also looks really attractive and you can help by counting the different types of flowers in your lawn and submitting to Plantlife and the #EveryFlowerCounts survey.
WET IS WONDERFUL! If you have space, create a pond! It doesn’t have to be very big - an old washing up bowl sunk into the ground is perfect for small gardens. Make sure there are varying depths and an easy access/ exit ramp for animals to use in case they fall in.
Here is some more information on How To Build a Pond.
Also, you should provide clean drinking water for wildlife as often as you put out food. This could be a shallow bowl or something more elaborate, but if you’re using a steep sided vessel, please put some rocks in the bottom to help small animals climb out.
Insects also need water, but are in danger of drowning. You can help by filling a shallow bowl with small pebbles or gravel and pouring water so that it just reaches the top. Insects will land on the dry gravel and walk to the edge to lap up the water.
FOOD GLORIOUS FOOD! In the UK, we spend millions of pounds every year on feeding birds and other wildlife in our gardens. There are so many different types of food and feeder out there, we could write several blogs on the subject! But here’s a few handy tips:
Variety - different food will appeal to different species. For birds, using a seed mix which includes sunflowers (or sunflower hearts), millet, oats, maize, wheat will appeal to most species, although peanuts and niger seed are also popular. You can add suet/ fat balls and mealworms, but these should be fed in moderation.
We’ve created some instructions on How To Make a Bird Feeder.
For most mammals, they will just eat whatever they can find. Hedgehogs in particular are very good at eating things that are not good for them, which in some cases can be ingredients in hedgehog specific food. If you have hedgehogs visiting your garden, you should put out a small amount of cat or kitten food (they don’t like the fish varieties), either dry kibble or meaty. They should not be fed mealworms, peanuts or dried fruits (which are not good for any mammals due to the higher sugar content), or be given milk to drink (water is fine).
For insects, plant a variety of pollen and nectar rich native species, which flower at different times of year to provide food throughout the season. Yellow and blue flowers are particularly good.
Human scraps are not suitable for wildlife - although we’ve all fed bread to ducks in the park, it isn’t particularly nutritional for them and can cause problems if fed to young birds before they have fully developed. Likewise, throwing scraps onto your roof often attracts scavengers such as Foxes, Gulls and Red Kites, which can be an amazing sight to see. However, the day you forget to feed them they are likely to cause issues to you or your neighbours, and may become a nuisance.
Location - some birds will happily hang off feeders, while others prefer to forage underneath. Again, variety is key, and moving feeders around semi-regularly will help protect your smaller birds from predators such as Sparrowhawks.
Clean it up - Unfortunately, many diseases are spread at feeding stations, especially those that have many visitors. You should wash your feeders every time you refill them, or if you notice the food is not being eaten/ going mouldy. If you see any sick birds in your garden, you should consider removing your feeding station temporarily to prevent further disease. For more information on this, and to report any sick or dead wildlife in your garden, please visit Garden Wildlife Health.
HOME SWEET HOME! There are all sorts of homes for wildlife, and most are designed for gardens. Bird nest boxes usually come in two forms - a hole or an open nest. These appeal to different species and should be positioned appropriately (out of prevailing weather and direct sunlight, and with some cover from vegetation) You can also buy specialist nest boxes for species such as Sparrow (which like to nest as a colony), Swifts (which will involve ladders to place their artificial nests high on buildings) and of course, owls!
Other homes could be provided for Bats, Hedgehogs, Toads, and of course, what they all eat… insects! Our How To Build a Bug Hotel guide will help you get started using items from your recycling or found on a walk.
So, whether you have a windowsill or balcony, or a few acres to play with, it’s easy to make space for wildlife in our gardens.
If you follow any of our How To guides and want to share the results, please email info@owl-help.org.uk or share them with us on social media.