Mixed fortunes for Blue Tits

Being a conservation organisation, we’re always trying to do our bit for nature by providing numerous nest boxes for our native birds to use.

Our Education Officer, Susan, has been a nest recorder and bird ringer for years, so she has taken responsibility of monitoring any nests on site and submitting the records to the British Trust for Ornithology. Here, she talks of the mixed results this year.

The season seemed quite late this year, with the first eggs laid about a week later than last year. Of the boxes we have up, two are in relatively high disturbance areas, yet these are consistently the ones used! Maybe a clever tactic as more humans passing by might deter predators?

The one located in our compound area was claimed by Jade, while the one on Lincoln’s aviary was claimed by Mat. Over the next week or so, Jade won on timings as her eggs were laid first, and therefore hatched first, about a week before Mat’s!

Hatching day for the compound nest - lots of hungry mouths to feed!

Blue Tits will lay one egg a day, up to 10 or 12 eggs in total. The female will start incubating when the last, or sometimes second last egg has been laid, so that all of the eggs hatch synchronously within 24 hours of each other. This is a great strategy as Blue Tits play the numbers game, so that if all their chicks survive to fledging, they flood the local area and hopefully some will avoid being predated.

Female Blue Tit keeping her eggs warm on Lincoln’s aviary

A week after hatching, most of Jade’s chicks were ringed, however, three were too small to have a ring so returned to the nest.

A young Blue Tit about to receive a ring

A few days later, Jade informed me of a surprise nest in the Woodland Walk. This box was well hidden behind one of our log stacks, and I had completely missed it on my initial check of the boxes. What makes this even more remarkable is that we were working on the shelter at the back of the Flying Ground (within 1m of this box) well into the usual breeding season, so had written off the boxes in this area due to the high disturbance! This family must have moved in the day the work stopped, as when I opened the box I found it full of Blue Tits ready to fledge!

This little Blue Tit doesn’t look too happy about becoming a science bird!

We quickly gathered them all into a waiting bag, and proceeded to ring each chick before returning to the box. While this was going on, mum and dad were sat in the trees above us, chirping their concern as we gently handled their offspring. All chicks were returned to their nest, but by the end of the day at least four chicks were seen in the trees, now with a tiny ID ring on their legs.

I returned to check Jade’s original nest in the compound and was disappointed to pull out two very recently deceased chicks. Both these chicks were what can only be described as skin and bone, and we suspect that they only had one parent. There were three remaining chicks in the nest, and one of these was unringed, so it was quickly given a ring and returned to the box as mum came back with a beak full of insects.

Mat’s nest had by now hatched, and were probably big enough to ring. However, given the delayed growth of the compound nest, I opted to give them an extra couple of days just to make sure. The difficulty in judging whether they’re all big enough to ring is that the smallest chicks are usually at the bottom of the nest, and removing all the chicks to check causes unnecessary disturbance if you must return a few days later to ring the smaller chicks.

Are they ringable?

When we checked on them a few days later, they were all a good size and well feathered. From this nest, all ten eggs had hatched and survived, which was fantastic to see! I invited staff and volunteers to come and watch, and each chick not only received a unique ID ring, but also a “pet name” based on their looks or behaviour during the ringing process!

Einstein, due to his scruffy fluff

Puddle, as this little one seemed to melt into my hand (this is a defence behaviour)

The purposes of ringing chicks such as Blue Tits in the nest is to determine fledgling survival. Most of these birds won’t survive to breed themselves next year, but by ringing them we can monitor how many do. To highlight this, Susan caught two of the three mums while they were incubating their eggs, and was excited to find one already had a ring on. When she looked back through last year’s ringing data, this was actually ringed as a chick last year, showing it survived to breed and is showing site fidelity by nesting in the same box it hatched from in!

New Artwork in our Shop

Here at Suffolk Owl Sanctuary, we have always been keen to support local crafts, arts and produce.

We are thrilled to announce that Jess Myers has chosen to display her work in our shop, and made it available for our visitors to purchase. Here is a bit of information from Jess about her work:

Jess at work

“Jess Myers Art originated in 2019 when I relocated from Sussex to rural Norfolk, settling on the edge of the stunning Thetford Forest.

I’ve always had a love of animals and my chosen subject matter comes from a lifelong affection and endless passion for all things furry and feathered. Since relocating, I have found an endless source of inspiration, quite literally, on my doorstep.

I work solely in the medium of pencils, where I strive to create highly detailed and realistic drawings of animals, both wildlife and domestic.

If our national Covid lockdowns taught us anything, it was to appreciate and value nature and the creatures we’re lucky enough to share this planet with. Through my drawings, I hope to do just that.

The original drawings to some of my wildlife pieces will be exhibited in the Beyond the Image Gallery from the 30th June- 30th July. As well as these, I also offer Pet Portrait commissions, the perfect gift to celebrate or remember your furry loved one.

Please visit my website for more details.

www.jessmyersart.co.uk”

Jess has already produced a number of framed prints and greetings cards featuring some of the Owls and other Birds of Prey that can be found living here at Suffolk Owl Sanctuary, and is keen to create a portfolio of work featuring some our other birds. Over the coming months we expect Jess to visit as she photographs our birds to enable her to work on future pieces from her studio at home.

In addition to her drawings, Jess has also produced some wooden signs and coasters using pyrography, which are unique to our shop and been selling very well!

Shop assistant Catherine said “Jess’s work is so life-like and we are very happy to give her a space in our shop. We are sure that our visitors will enjoy her work too, and they make a great gift or memento of a visit to Suffolk Owl Sanctuary".”

Breeding success for Critically Endangered Species!

Over the years, we have successfully bred a number of species here at Suffolk Owl Sanctuary, covering a range of Raptor groups - Owls, Hawks, Falcons, Buzzards and Kites. As part of our growing concern about the decline in Vulture populations over the past few decades, we added Hooded Vultures to our captive collection in……

Jack and Rose have been firm favourites of our afternoon Flying Displays. Rose is ……. Jack’s senior, and over the past couple of winters we’ve seen the pair building a nest and even copulating. However, we feared that Jack might have been still too young. Last year, Rose laid an egg, but it was infertile.

Last winter, as soon as we suspected that the pair were getting into the mood, we moved them over to a quieter aviary at SOS2 and installed a screen to give them some privacy. Camera’s were installed so that we could monitor them without disturbance and we largely left them to it.

In February an egg was laid, and following advice from other collections, we removed this to put in an incubator. This encourages the parents to lay a second egg. Unfortunately, the first egg was infertile, but this is normal for many species of birds. We opted to leave the second egg with Jack and Rose. During this time, we minimised disturbance to encourage them to remain on the egg, especially during the colder weather (in their native Africa, February and March are significantly warmer than here in Suffolk!)

One day in mid April, Mat went to check the cameras and discovered a chick in the nest! We had missed hatching day but guessed that the chick was only a day or two old! Everyone was sworn to secrecy as the first few weeks of life are critical and we didn’t want to jinx this fabulous achievement!

The team continued to monitor the chick remotely, providing extra food for the parents as they now had an extra mouth to feed. When the chick was about a week old, Jess climbed up the ladder to get a closer look and do a quick assessment on the chick. During this time, Jack and Rose had to be held back by the falconers, as their instinct is to protect their baby, and whilst they have always had a good relationship with the falconers, they were clearly seen as a threat at this time of year.

When the chick was almost 4 weeks old, we invited Dr Elliott Simpson-Brown, our consultant vet, to come and give them a proper vet check and to ring them. The chick passed with a clean bill of health, although left manager Maz slightly less clean, as they demonstrated their effective defence of vomiting all over a potential threat. Unfortunately for us though, Jack and Rose have been doing a great job of feeding the chick, and the ring wouldn’t fit over their already huge feet! This isn’t a major issue, as the chick will be microchipped when they’re a little bigger, and we can use a split ring as a visual identifier.

For now, the chick remains with their parents at SOS2, our smaller nature centre across the road from our main site, but over the next few months we will slowly start to remove the screening to allow visitors a chance to see our very special baby. We are hoping that this individual will stay with us and join the Flying Team later in the year, but this will be very dependent on what Jack and Rose allow, as Hooded Vulture chicks are usually looked after by their parents until they reproduce the following year, and in the wild Hooded Vultures often congregate in family groups.

OUR HOODED VULTURE NEEDS A NAME! We are inviting visitors and our followers on social media to send in their name suggestions. The team will then select a shortlist which will go to a public vote on our Facebook page.

The Owlympians raise vital funds for our Raptor Hospital

As a charity, our work relies on the generosity of supporters who donate to us. There are many ways that you can support us, whether giving regularly, visiting us or organising a fundraiser of your own, but it all helps us care for sick and injured birds of prey who come into our Raptor Hospital.

Our staff are dedicated to our cause as well, so when Izzy and Mat decided to sign up for a 10km run, they knew exactly which charity they would support.

The Colchester Stampede has been an annual fundraising event for a number of years, and gives runners a unique opportunity to run past the Rhinos, Elephants and Giraffes at Colchester Zoo at the start and end points of the course, with the middle section taking place on surrounding closed roads through the Essex countryside. Every year, runners race to clock up a personal best, raise funds for a charity close to their hearts, and have some fun along the way.

Izzy and Mat have been in training for this event since signing up 5 months ago, and have impressed all the staff and volunteers here at Suffolk Owl Sanctuary with their dedication. Some of our birds got involved too, with Rafiki our African Spotted Eagle Owl becoming their coach and joining them on some short running laps around the Flying Ground!

They even dressed for the occasion in hand made owl wings, created by fellow falconer Dolly and her sister Flossie.

Here’s their account of the race!

Race day arrived and we were both excited and nervous in equal measure. It was a colder morning at Colchester Zoo, so our tailor-made owl wings came in handy to keep us warm!

It was amazing to start the race running past the tigers and elephants, we managed to set a good pace and very much enjoyed the positive energy from all the other runners.

As the kilometres passed and we started to tire, we had a lovely chap playing music from his backpack that reignited our energy levels.

The last part of the race is a steep hill, just before you arrive back at the zoo and that was a huge test for both of us.

We struggled up the hill, made it back to the zoo, said hi to the elephants again, and the awaiting finish line!

Between them, Izzy and Mat smashed their target of £600 before race day, and donations are still coming in now that they have been presented with their medals! If you would like to donate to their cause, please see their fundraising page.

Students lend a helping hand

We are delighted to be working in partnership with Suffolk Rural College to provide some of their students with work skills.

Earlier this year, students from the college built a number of Barn Owl nest boxes for us, as part of the introduction to their college course. This week, Jess and Jay were accompanied by some of the students to install one of the boxes locally to replace an old box that had fallen off the tree. Overlooking fields and hedgerows, this location is perfect for Barn Owls and we have every confidence that the box will be used by the local population in the future.

The group then returned to the Sanctuary to help us carry out groundwork tasks. Over the course of this term, they have done a fantastic job of helping to move woodchip to our Woodland Walk path, clear rubble from an area we have been developing, painting our new shelter on the flying ground and general gardening jobs around the site.

“We always look forward to working with Suffolk Rural and its students. It gives them the opportunity to learn employability skills in a relaxed environment, all while teaching us a thing or two along the way.” - Beckie, Volunteer Coordinator

New tail before release

The female Sparrowhawk who was hit by a car has received a new tail before being released.

The poor bird suffered from impact injuries to her face, but was rolled underneath the vehicle, causing significant damage to her tail. Whilst her head injuries subsided after a few days of treatment, feathers won’t be replaced until the next natural moult cycle, which in birds of prey is generally at the end of the breeding season.

Three tail feathers were snapped almost in half when this Sparrowhawk arrived, leaving a big gap in her braking and steering system.

Tails are vital for a pursuit predator like a Sparrowhawk, as they act as the steering and braking system, so we were concerned about releasing her with a faulty system. Thankfully there is a method of replacing broken feathers that has been perfected over the centuries by falconers and is now frequently used to rehabilitate wild rescued birds.

We put out an appeal to our contacts who may have some suitable moulted feathers which we could use, and thankfully we were able to source some. Jess performed the procedure, but it was a useful training experience for our newer staff members, as it’s not a procedure we’ve had to perform in recent years.

Imping involves cutting a new feather to the exact size to replace the missing part of any damaged feathers. The new feather is then carefully slotted into the central shaft and glued into place, being meticulous not to get any glue on the soft feathery filaments.

As you can see from the photo, Jess did a great job, making it impossible to see which feathers have been imped, with the only sign that the plumage is ever so slightly different!

Spot the new feathers!

This Sparrowhawk was left for a couple of days to check how she liked her new tail, then she was released near where she was found.

Birds ringed ready for release

With a number of birds in our hospital almost ready for release, we invited Dr Hugh Hanmer from the British Trust for Ornithology to supervise Jess and Susan in ringing our patients.

The BTO has run the British ringing scheme for more than 100 years, and all the submitted records feed into national and international databases to aid conservation decisions. Ringing itself is a painless activity whereby a small metal ring is attached to the birds leg. This is similar to humans wearing a bracelet or watch and does not cause any discomfort or added stresses to the bird once released. As part of this process, ringers also attempt to age and sex the birds, by looking at specific features for each species. Ringers should also take measurements, particularly wing length and weight, as these combined can give an indication to the overall health of the bird (similar to the BMI used in humans.)

Here’s a run down on the birds that were ringed recently.

Sparrowhawk

This female Sparrowhawk has now been released

This Sparrowhawk was quite obviously a female based on her size, but taking accurate biometric measurements of her weight and wing length confirmed this. She was aged as a 5, which means that she hatched last year.

Stinky Buzzard

This Buzzard had uncharacteristically pale legs, possibly a sign of malnutrition as he was growing

We already suspected that this was a male, based on his small size, but upon closer examination to take the measurements, everything seemed a little out of proportion. His weight and wing length would make him a small female or a medium sized male, but he has quite small feet compared to the size of his body. He was also aged as a 5, shown by the ginger fringing on his feathers.

Pin Wing

Pin Wing being very well behaved while Jess attached her ring

Barn Owls helpfully show sexual dimorphism, in that females have some dark spots on their breast and flanks. These can be quite subtle, but Pin Wing had clear spotting, making her a female. She was also an older bird, showing at least 3 generations to her flight feathers. Out of interest, we measured both of her wings to see if there was any difference. Her right wing measured 292cm, while her left wing (the one that had been broken and had to be pinned) was 286cm. Despite this, she has been observed flying in her aviary and there appears to be no impact to her ability to get around.

Half-Tail

Jess ensures that the ring is secure and safe, to avoid any risk of entanglement

This Barn Owl was also helpfully spotty, so sexing her as a female was easy. Her aging was also straightforward as all of her flight feathers were uniform in colour, pattern and wear, telling us that they all grew at the same time, in the nest last year. She was a bit heavier than Pin Wing, possibly suggesting that she is in breeding condition. Unfortunately, she is going to stay with us for a bit longer while she regrows her tail feathers.

Tick Face

Always exciting to have an already ringed bird brought in!

This Barn Owl was already ringed, to our excitement! Spot-less flanks told us that this was a male, and he was a little smaller than the females, but not noticeably so (a few mm off the wing length, and the weight was about the same). He also had flight feathers of the same generation, so was aged as a 5. “Controlling” a ringed bird is always exciting, as we can find out exactly where he came from! We knew it wasn’t one we had previously ringed, so submitted a report to the BTO. He was ringed as a chick from a nest on a farm less than 3 miles away from where he was found with his injuries, which is a typical dispersal for a juvenile Barn Owl.

Guest Blog - Building for Barn Owls

We were recently contacted by Kit from Natural Building Studio, who wanted to share this local story with us about how easy it is to build with wildlife in mind.

Tiggins Meadow is a private rewilding project in East Suffolk. The land was previously used for agriculture but was intensively over-farmed and became infertile. Since 2008, it has been transformed into a private nature reserve; with areas of wildflower meadow, dense hedgerows, seasonal ponds, and thickets of coppiced willow. Over the years, barn owls have visited the site, and have been encouraged to settle by installing barn owl boxes in the trees.

In 2020, a local architecture practice - Natural Building Studio, helped to design and build Tiggins Barn; a tool store, shelter, and workshop space. The questions before we set out were:
How do we build to net-zero carbon?
How do we touch lightly on the landscape?
How do we make a building that creates additional habitat for wildlife?

We built a simple timber framed structure with a ridge line 4.5m above the ground. Owls enjoy a nest box that is at least 3m above ground level. At one gable end, we left a small part of the loft as an uninsulated space. We created a small access hole through the wood facade and built a ledge outside so that owls could easily navigate the entrance.

Within a month of finishing the cladding (before construction has even finished) a barn owl started roosting. We were surprised at how quickly they took to the space, but they must be called Barn Owls for a good reason.

Earlier this spring we found a pair visiting - hopefully they are getting ready to mate and nest.

We used other simple and low-cost techniques to integrate wildlife habitat into the design. The eaves overhang the facade and create ledges suitable for smaller birds to nest. The building is raised off the ground on micro-screw foundations, which are removable, recyclable, negate the need for carbon intensive concrete, and provide a dry and sheltered habitat. The facade has a void behind it which can be inhabited by insects and spiders but can be removed for maintenance or for if bees and wasps take over.

It’s easy to make space in buildings for wildlife. It doesn’t cost more. It doesn’t have to be ‘bolted on’. It can be integrated into a holistic design.

If you would like to learn more, please visit:

www.naturalbuildingstudio.com

or contact Kit:

naturalbuildingstudio@gmail.com

In search of Owls...

Over the weekend, some of our team embarked on a mission to locate and check some of the original nest boxes in place around the Thornham Estate. This is where the Thornham Owl Project started, under the guidance of Roger Buxton over 20 years ago. These boxes hadn’t been checked since 2019 due to Covid-related reasons, so it was important to locate them along the maze of non-public access tracks and check which were in use, or still present.

The intention of this project is to provide a safe place for native Owls and Kestrels to raise their young, and to feed these data into the national database, held by the British Trust for Ornithology. Working under licence with Dr Hugh Hanmer, Jess and Susan are keen to learn more about this work so that we can continue to monitor the population of Tawny, Barn and Little Owls, as well as Kestrels in the local area.

The day was expected to be nice, but upon arrival the sun had brought out all the visitors, and with not much shade available in the car park, Susan and Hugh’s two dogs came along for the ride.

Freya and Wish being field dogs for the day

The first box was an older style of chimney Tawny Owl box on a heavily ivy-d tree. Hugh put up the ladder and discovered that the box was “secured” to the tree by a single bungee chord and thin metal wire. This was clearly a “bodge-job” that hasn’t been repaired properly, but upon inspection inside the box itself, Hugh discovered a large squirrel drey. This box has been marked as one to replace in the autumn with a newer style which should make it more secure for Tawny Owls.

Not the most secure box, being held to the tree by an old bungee chord.

We then drove to check another Tawny Owl box in a lovely patch of open woodland. It was in a large Oak with a convenient low crown, so the shorter ladder could be used to access this natural platform. This box was empty, although there was evidence of past use, so we will re-check it in a few weeks time.

A super location for a Tawny Owl box

The next box we were unable to find, with the GPS location fixed on a fallen small tree in a horse paddock. There may have been a larger tree previously which has been felled, but the surrounding area was suitable for Tawny Owls and Little Owls, so we may return with some new boxes over the autumn.

We then drove down one of the access tracks to check Tawny, Barn, Little Owl and Kestrel boxes. Of these, only two were found. On our way, we were approached by a retired Gamekeeper who lives very close to one of the Tawny boxes. He was happy to see the boxes being checked again and asked if it would be possible to install a Barn Owl box, as he regularly sees one flying over the field beyond his garden. We took his details and said we’ll bring one out later in the year. We were interested to hear that he also helped with bird ringing on the Estate, as this is something Hugh and Susan are very interested to take up. A useful contact who might know some additional suitable locations for nest boxes in the future.

Following this, we visited a known Barn Owl box, which is visible from the public paths. Jess gained access via the farm and we were able to drive straight into the field, so less distance to carry the ladder! While Hugh climbed the ladder armed with a blocker to prevent any present owls from escaping, Jess found a fresh pellet on the ground beneath the tree. Unfortunately, there was no-one home, but fresh pellets inside the box means this is definitely one we’ll be checking again. The box was quite high up the Oak tree, but there were two suitable natural holes which Hugh was able to investigate using his phone. Both had evidence of occasional use so this could be an interesting tree to visit in the future!

The Little Owl box at the far end of this field was missing, but some baler twine attached at about the right height suggests that it may have been knocked off by cattle, who do sometimes graze in this field. If we replace this one, we’ll probably place it on the field boundary to offer some protection from curious cows.

We had a number of boxes still to find, and using an OS map app, it appeared that there was a track running past a camp site which should give access to this area. The first box was missing, but again, there was a fallen tree where the GPS point was! This was in a lovely location across a wet meadow margin to an arable field. Unfortunately, the main Norwich-London train-line formed the opposite field boundary, so we scouted out a suitable replacement location one field back from the railway line, and will probably replace with a Barn Owl box. The Kestrel box at the far end of this field wasn’t in the tree, but Hugh found it on the ground. The back of the box had started to rot, so we were unable to reattach it to the tree.

We returned to the truck and continued down the track towards what we hoped would be two or three further Tawny Owl boxes. The track was quite narrow, with vegetation and birch woodland on both sides. Jess had just said “I hope there’s somewhere I can turn down here” when the track suddenly became very wet. Jess was able to drive the truck to a slightly wider area so that she could turn around, but then disaster struck as the wheels started spinning in the mud!

Jess, almost about to give up after we got stuck!

Susan and Hugh both jumped out and tried pushing which made little difference. Thankfully, there was plenty of fallen trees in the woodland, so they placed pieces of wood in front and behind the wheels so that Jess could try and rock the vehicle onto a more stable surface. With some expert driving (and quite a bit of sweating!) Jess was able to get the truck back onto the drier track and the team escaped to terra firma for a late lunch (having been stuck in the mud for well over half an hour!)

Suitably de-stressed and with blood glucose and pressure returning to normal, the team opted to check one last box before calling it a day. This one was down a well surfaced track and led to a private house. We parked just beyond the house and walked down the track (which was wet!) to find the Tawny Owl box. This one also had a squirrel drey in it, but was in otherwise good condition so will be cleaned out in the autumn ready for next year.

Although we were slightly disappointed not to find any Owls in these boxes, we did manage to locate most of the boxes in this area and have a few that look promising for later in the year. We also made some useful contacts with people who might be able to remotely monitor the boxes for us, which will save us an enormous amount of time in the future as we will be able to prioritise boxes with known activity. We have full admiration for Roger and Kevin for what they achieved in this area and are hopeful to continue their good work in years to come.

We would like to thank Hugh from the BTO and JoJo from Thornham for their continued support, and to all the landowners who give us permission to access these boxes. All of this work is carried out under licence from the British Trust for Ornithology. Jess would also like to thank Wish and Freya for being super supportive during our time of need, and for providing comforting cuddles when it was all over!

Wish checked all the safety equipment before Hugh climbed the ladder

Bigger and better - Suffolk Schools Farm and Country Fair 2023

Last week, our Education team joined exhibitors from all over Suffolk at Trinity Park, Ipswich to attend the Suffolk Schools Farm and Country Fair, hosted by the Suffolk Agricultural Association.

This year was the biggest yet, with over 4000 7-9 year olds attending to learn more about businesses and organisations linked with Food, Conservation, Emergency Services, Health and Wellbeing and of course Farming!

Susan and Bee were joined by volunteer Debs, who set up our stall with the usual activities - Pellet Detectives and Food Chain Bracelets. Based on last years experience, Susan had opted for more tables to spread out the activities this year, in the hope that there wouldn’t be so much waiting for the young visitors.

Susan and Bee ready for the children to arrive.

From 9.30 when the first schools arrived, until 12pm, the team engaged with what felt like most the visitors, with all the activities proving to be even more popular than last year! At one point, while showing the difference between a vole and a shrew skull found in some pellets, one child exclaimed “BLIMEY” which summed up the marvel of this activity.

“At one point, I looked up and there must have been about 100 faces looking back at me, waiting for their turn to become Pellet Detectives!”

The day was made even more special as we were honoured to meet HRH the Duchess of Edinburgh, who attended our stand with a small group of school children to learn how to make a Food Chain Bracelet. With Susan on hand to explain the instructions, the Duchess asked the children what they knew about food chains, then quizzed them before moving on to continue her visit of the event. She was presented with an SOS Pin Badge and we hope that she enjoyed her day.

HRH the Duchess of Edinburgh visiting our stand and making a Food Chain bracelet with some of the young visitors.

Later in the day, when most of the schools were heading back to their coaches and there were only a couple of groups left, one child asked the team how they could get a job doing this. Clearly, our work had inspired them, and hopefully many more, to consider a career in conservation education.

As the last group left, the team stood in shocked disarray at the sheer number of children they had spoken to! All had sore throats from speaking to so many people, and were very grateful to the SAA for providing a hot lunch and cold drinks at the end of the day.

Susan and Bee ready to welcome learners.

Shân Bendall, Education Manager at the Suffolk Agricultural Association said “The School Farm and Country Fair is hugely important to children to allow them to experience the richness of rural life as well as the learn about the huge variety of work that goes into producing the food they eat. The day brings to life learning with hands-on, interactive exhibits ensuring children go home enthused about what they have seen, done and learnt. We hope the memories and knowledge from the day go on to shape the decisions young people make around food, farming and the countryside.”

Hedgehog Hotel welcomes new guests

We are pleased to be supporting Suffolk Prickles Hedgehog Rescue in their care and rehabilitation of hedgehogs from the local area. After a period of quiet, we have recently taken in 4 large Hedgehogs for their final step before release.

Bob arrived at Suffolk Prickles from a local vets last year as a baby. Unfortunately, he didn’t put on enough weight to be released before the winter, so has spent all winter enjoying the warmth and care from Prickles. He is now over 1kg in weight and ready for release.
Trinny was found wandering locally and taken to Prickles. She was very small and like Bob, was unable to be released before the cold weather arrived. She has now gained sufficient weight and will be released soon.

Trinny is still under 1kg in weight, but is gaining weight every day!

Ticklety Boo was named because he was covered in ticks when he was found last year. These blood-sucking parasites can spread disease amongst animals and humans alike, but wild animals like Hedgehogs cannot be treated with the same chemicals as we put on our dogs and cats, as this contaminates the natural environment. Ticklety Boo had the ticks carefully removed over a period of a few days and then was given time to recover.
Petal was a very late baby found wandering in October. She was far too small to survive hibernation over the winter, so was taken into Prickles for them to look after them.

Over wintering hedgehogs in rescue facilities enables them to continue feeding and gaining weight, which gives them an advantage in the Spring. Hedgehogs hibernate because of a lack of natural food (insects) over the colder months, but can sometimes wake up if they are disturbed or get very hungry. It is therefore important to continue to put some food out for hedgehogs if you know they are in your garden, just to see them through the winter.

As all of these Hedgehogs have been in care for a period of time, our Hedgehog Hotel, which is sponsored by SOS patrons, is giving them a chance to experience life outside in a safe environment before they are released. Our facilities here include indoor areas with warm and cosy nest boxes, and 24/7 access to an outdoor run, where the Hedgehogs can snuffle in the grass and dried leaves for insects and build some fitness in a larger space.

Keeper Jennie says “It’s great to have guests back in our Hedgehog Hotel, but we don’t expect these 4 to be with us long, as they are already a decent weight and should be released very soon.”

Keeper Jennie gives each Hedgehog a quick check every morning before weighing

Miraculous recovery from a Sparrowhawk

When we receive a call about a Sparrowhawk in need of help, usually it’s as a result of a window collision. These birds are now a common sight pursuing their prey in gardens, and in the excitement of the chase, they sometimes don’t see clear glass windows.

We were therefore surprised to be asked to help a Sparrowhawk which had been hit by a car. This unfortunate bird not only hit the car but was also rolled along the tarmac. When she first arrived, she was in a very sorry state, with a massive head trauma causing swelling around her eye, bruising to her legs and feet and damage to her tail.

The team immediately gave her pain relief and placed her in our ICU room for monitoring. The main concern was her head, and we were worried that she might have suffered damage to her eye. However, after just a couple of days in our care, the swelling disappeared and her eye looked good as new! Jess used an opthalmoscope to check for any damage and none was detected, which was great news!

Sparrowhawk’s generally don’t do well in captivity, so we are keen to have her released as soon as possible. Although she has some damaged tail feathers, we are confident that she will adapt until they regrow. There is a method called imping, whereby falconers can use complete feathers moulted from captive birds, or collected from deceased birds, to fill the gaps in birds that need to be released. This has been done successfully in the past, but unfortunately we don’t have any suitable feathers available at this time to perform this procedure.

Prior to her immiment release, we invited Dr Hugh Hanmer to supervise Jess in ringing this feisty patient. This painless process involves attaching a metal ring to the birds leg (similar to us wearing a bracelet), with a unique alpha-numeric code. Should this bird then be found again, we will get a report to say where she’s got to, and the finder will know that she was released following a period in our Raptor Hospital.

Barn Owl Comeback?

Regular readers of this blog may have noticed a lack of Barn Owls being admitted to our Raptor Hospital in recent years. Since 2020, we have have relatively few Barn Owls brought to us, and last year they were noticeably absent for most of the year.

We don’t know the reasons behind this, as our own nest box monitoring locally was curtailed during this period due to Covid and volunteer availability. However, the first few months of 2023 has already seen more Barn Owls admitted than the whole of 2022, so hopefully whatever population blip the local Owls were experiencing is now over.

Whilst we obviously don’t want any birds to need our help, it is a good indication on what the local population is doing, with increasing numbers of Buzzards being admitted in recent years corresponding to increased sightings across the area.

Here are the Barn Owl cases we’ve had so far this year!

Pin-Wing

This Barn Owl was successfully operated on to fix the broken wing.

This Owl was found with a broken wing, which we were able to successfully operate on thanks to Dr Elliott Simpson-Brown. After a few weeks in recovery, we are very pleased with how the wing has healed and are keeping everything crossed that this bird will be returned to her home territory soon.
You can read more about her case here.

Half Tail

This Barn Owl is missing half his tail, which will need to regrow before he can be released.

This Owl was found roadside after a potential RTA. He was a bit battered and bruised and is missing half his tail, but is otherwise eating and moving around fine. Missing such a significant part of his tail is an issue though. The feathers have broken off right near the follicle so will need to naturally moult out before any new feathers arrive. It's not hindering his flight too much, but missing too much of the tail can make hunting very difficult. As such, this Owl will be staying with us until he has replaced his missing tail feathers, and will almost certainly be released from one of our Hack pens.

Tick Face

This Barn Owl was covered in parasites but also had injuries suggesting a tussle with another animal

This little barn owl came in covered in parasites and ticks. He had also sadly been grabbed by another animal or bird as was showing wounds around the face and neck. We are happy to say he is also feeding well and has not shown any further signs of infection or lasting issues from the injuries. When he arrived, he was wearing a BTO ring, which we have logged and will share the details in a future blog.

Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, some birds are too badly injured for us to save. We received a Barn Owl from a member of the public who thought it was dead when first found, face down in a field. Upon careful examination in our Raptor Hospital, our team discovered that the bird was suffering from severe bruising to the body, possibly the result of being clipped by a vehicle. There were no other signs of injury, so the bird was given pain relief and offered food, while being kept warm in our ICU. After a few days, we wanted to assess his ability to get around, so he was put into one of our small aviaries for monitoring. Despite seeming to be doing ok, a couple of days later the team found that he had died over night in the nest box provided. This was very upsetting to the team who had cared for him, but it appears that the initial impact had caused internal injuries which were undetectable. At least we can take comfort in the knowledge that his last few days were warm, pain free and well fed.
You can read more about his case here.

This Barn Owl came to us alive but had significant bruising to his body and unfortunately succumbed to his injuries.

Location, Location, LOCATION!

Here at Suffolk Owl Sanctuary, we pride ourselves on being available to help sick, injured or orphaned birds of prey from across Suffolk, and sometimes beyond!

Most of the calls to our emergency helpline come from people who have already got the bird in a safe place, like a box, or are calling for advice having found a bird in a specific location.

However, sometimes we are left messages which can send us on a wild “owl” chase down country roads, delaying the initial recovery of the bird and taking considerable staff or volunteer time as they search for a small bird over a large area.

One such recent case reported a Barn Owl that was seen beside a road near Newmarket. We were given a grid reference location, but when we arrived there was no sign of the bird. We were then informed that the grid reference was for the 1km square, so Jay spent about an hour driving down each lane in that grid square to try locate the owl.

In order to help speed up any rescue attempts of wild birds of prey, we are asking that members of the public use one of two apps available for free on their smart phones to significantly improve this service.

Google Maps is already a popular option for those who travel and have to navigate to unfamiliar locations. But did you know that you can also use it to tell others of specific location by dropping a “pin” on the map. By using the compass icon to navigate to your current location, you can then hold your finger on the screen to “drop a pin”. This will generate a red "pin” on the map, which you can save, then share via email or text with us.

what3words is gaining popularity amongst many delivery and emergency services. The whole world is divided into 3m x3m grid squares, and each 3x3 square is allocated a unique 3 word code. This can be easier to use or remember compared to a 10 figure grid reference to have similar level of accuracy. To find your location, you simply open the App on your phone and hit the compass logo for the dot on the map to find your location. It may take a short time for the accuracy to increase (ideally less than 10m), but the what3words code location will come up at the top, which you can then share with us. By sending us the three word code, we can navigate to that exact location and avoid any delay in helping any birds in need.

For example, we use what3words to direct emergency services to the closest access point to the Sanctuary if we have a medical emergency on site, as our main entrance (pins.shorten.perfume) is a about 100m away from the access gate to the Flying Ground (sparkles.viewer.extent).

Knowing the exact location that birds are picked up from also helps us when they are ready for release so that we can return them back to their territory, if appropriate. It can also be used to aid any police investigations should there be suspicious circumstances involving a bird that’s brought to us, so accuracy is crucial.

Stinky Buzzard gets a sling

Although we don’t always name the birds that are brought into our Raptor Hospital, sometimes a name sticks!

Stinky is a young male Buzzard who was found in a ditch beside a road. He’s named Stinky because, having been in the ditch for an unknown length of time, he had a certain aroma around him which was distinctly unpleasant.

Stinky has been receiving a special solution via a crop tube as he’s reluctant to eat.

Stinky getting fitted for the sling.

Upon arrival, our team discovered that he was missing some flight feathers from his right wing, and there appeared to be issues with his legs. Although there were no obvious signs of concussion, he had clearly suffered an impact to the right side of his body. In our hospital quiet area, it was clear that he was struggling to stand, so the team fashioned a sling to support his body while encouraging blood flow and muscle use in his legs and feet.

Stinky in his sling

UPDATE - After a couple of days, he was able to grip with his feet, but was still listing significantly to the side, so we arranged for an X-ray to rule out any damage to the bones. This came back showing that it was just soft tissue damage. Following a week of gentle physio and periodic time in the sling, the Buzzard shocked us all by perching almost normally! He is still wobbly, which does indicate likely nerve bruising or damage from an impact, however the signs are good he is going to continue to recover.

Jess had to sneak up to get this photo of the bird perching!

Barn Owl Operation a success

A few weeks ago we received a call about a Barn Owl in trouble. She was found tangled in a hedge in a rural location, but no-where near any roads. When she arrived with us, it was apparent that the bird had a broken wing.

Thankfully, our specialist vet Dr Elliott Simpson-Brown was due to visit the next day so he brought all of his equipment to be able to help this poor bird. Without access to x-ray, Elliott decided to operate in order to determine whether the break was suitable for pinning. Thankfully, it was a clean break of the humerus, in exactly the right place to make the chance of recovery pretty good.

Dr Elliott Simpson-Brown cutting the metal “pin” down to size while the Barn Owl is under anaesthetic ready for the operation.

The operation lasted about 2 hours, being a very delicate process of attaching metal rods to the broken bones and using an external bridge to keep these stable while the bones healed. After the Owl came round from the anaesthetic, we were pleased that it seemed quite perky, and was happy to eat any food we put in front of it. Within a week we were optimistic that the healing process was working, as there appeared to be no callous developing around the break and the bird was showing itself to be quite agile, despite the metal bridge sticking out from its wing.

Checking the flexibility of the wing after a period of healing with a pin and bridge still in place

After a couple of weeks, Elliott returned to remove the bridge. The external bridge was keeping the bone from moving while it healed, whilst the internal pin kept the join from separating. Once the bridge was removed another x-ray was taken to assess the positioning once again. One of the major risks of pinning a bone is the alignment of the wing post healing. Any misalignment of the bone could cause major issues with flight ability long term, thus ability to hunt and survive. Likewise, any large callus around or over the site of healing could affect joint mobility, and even weight distribution of the wing load, so it is really important to encourage optimal healing for the owls survival.

X-ray showing the perfect heal to the broken wing, with very little callous formed around the break. The metal pin will be removed after a short period to allow the soft tissue time to recover from the operation to remove the bridge.

The break was midway along the humerus bone, a large bone in the upper wing, and clean enough to be a good candidate for this procedure. It is never assured it will be successful until we can assess the healing pattern post surgery (2-3 weeks) and the patient must remain confined not to cause further injury, but able to move enough so the muscles and joints don't start to seize. Luckily for this Barn Owl, the healing could not have gone better. The bone has knitted straight and the callous around the fracture was so minimal it was hard to see where it initially was. The pin and bridge had done it's job so well the owl was able to fly soon after removal. 

The pin will remain in place for another week or so until soft tissue swelling has receded to a point it can be removed. Until then she is residing in a large aviary to start strengthening those muscles again.

Education Team attend CLOtC Conference

Our Education Officer Susan, Assistant Bethany and mascot Billy Jr. recently travelled to the West Midlands Safari Park to attend the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom Conference.

This was the first in person conference since 2019, and with 280 delegates from across the UK participating in a variety of workshops, seminars and talks, it was a packed day!

Billy Jr getting ready for a busy day of talks, presentations and workshops!

The day started with a welcome and key note speeches from Paul Rose (Explorer), Prof. Mick Waters (former Headteacher, Author and advisor on the curriculum) and Jon Clarke (Shadow Headteacher). Each shared they’re own journeys in Learning Outside the Classroom, highlighting key moments where taking pupils out of the classroom has had a big impact, not only on those pupils but also on staff.
It is all too easy to forget that there are some in this country who have never visited a beach, or climbed a mountain, and these three speakers really inspired everyone in the Treetops Marquee to make positive changes to improve everyone’s accessibility to the outdoors.

After a short break, delegates were then taken to the impressive Safari Academy, where there were a number of different workshops for providers and schools. Susan attended one looking at how we can better support our users learning objectives, which considered the “menu” of options or a more bespoke offering. This session also allowed opportunities for networking and Susan picked up lots of useful hints and tips from the other providers in the room on how to collect feedback (from teachers and pupils), what questions should be asked at the booking stage and how to manage expectations of teachers, pupils and providers staff.

Bethany attended a workshop run by the National Trust about making venues inclusive, not only for visitors but also staff. There was a big emphasis on trying to make sure workplaces and venues offer appropriate adjustments before people ask for them. This was followed by a group discussion about the benefits of diversity and how it can improve the overall atmosphere of a centre. Having multiple perspectives and cultures represented in a place helps create a more welcoming environment and allows others to feel more committed to your centre. Having these inclusive measures already in place reduces any anxieties people may already have about visiting. It was highlighted how important it can be to ensure any difficulties someone may encounter have already been considered and adjustments put into place before they step through the door, which Bethany thought was very relevant to us, as many of our visitors come to reflect and improve their mental health.

Susan then attended another workshop which featured teachers from several schools from around the UK explaining what they are looking for from an educational visit. Accessibility for pupils who have additional needs, particularly those who are neurodivergent, was a key point which was raised multiple times through out the day, and again, Susan picked up lots of notes on how we can improve on this to make Suffolk Owl Sanctuary a safer and more welcoming place for groups to visit.

Whilst Susan was in the classroom with teachers, Bethany was outside on a Safari Guided Tour with one of the West Midlands Safari Guides.

During the lunch break, they had a brief opportunity to explore some of the indoor houses on the foot safari area of the Park. Susan visited the Twilight Zone, featuring bats, invertebrates and fish, as well as some delightful Owl-faced Monkeys, and stopped off to see the Penguins on her way back while Bethany visited the Reptile House.

After lunch, there was a presentation of awards for schools who had achieved LOtC Mark Gold, Silver and Bronze Awards, before the last workshops of the day. Susan opted for the Safari Tour, and took Billy Jr with her to “meet” some of the animals that call West Midlands Safari Park home. The Guide drove them through all the reserves, pausing to chat about the Buffalo, Rhinos, Cheetahs, Lions, African Hunting Dogs, Elephants and Giraffe. Some of the herbivores on the tour were very keen to see the tour bus, as they know there is food, so Billy Jr had a close encounter when one of the Giraffe stuck it’s head through the window!

While Susan and Billy Jr were exploring outside, Bethany attended a workshop by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust all about wellbeing. It started off outside and got them participating in a few of their activities which help children connect better with nature. A small 5 minute activity such as standing with your eyes closed and listening to what noises are going on around you, selecting which noise is the most prominent and favourite then thinking about why it had an impact on you.  They explained that very simple low effort tasks with no to very little rules were the most beneficial and really helped to engage childrens interest to explore nature further. Bethany found this session the most engaging as it isn’t often we get the opportunity to participate in the activities we run ourselves and it gave her a better understanding of how important small interactions with nature can be for some who have never experienced any or even have some anxiety around nature. 

Upon their return to the Treetops Marquee, there was a networking event with several themes or topics for discussion. It was at this point that Susan and Bethany made contact with a few other providers from East Anglia, and their conversations were continued at the end of the conference. The conference closed with a poetry reading by Roy McFarlane.

Overall, it was an inspirational event, and both Susan and Bethany returned with lots of ideas on how to improve our educational offering. Some of these will be rolled out over the coming months and should offer changes for schools, groups and home educating families, as well as general visitors.

ABWAK Conference

Two weeks ago, Izzy, our trainee falconer, attended the Association of British and Irish Wild Animal Keepers (ABWAK) 2023 symposium. This is where keepers from all over the UK meet up to discuss the latest research and projects being carried out in zoos and aquaria. Here’s how she got on…

On the 4th and 5th of March, I headed to Yorkshire Wildlife Park to attend the ABWAK 2023 symposium. It was a wonderful weekend, full of research talks, workshops, networking opportunities, and of course, lots of lovely animals! Yorkshire Wildlife Park and ABWAK very kindly offered free entry to the zoo on the day prior to the symposium, so I did have a nice look around, and enjoyed seeing England’s only polar bears at Project Polar.

Izzy enjoyed visiting England’s only polar bears, at Yorkshire Wildlife Park. The park doesn’t own many birds, but is known for it’s collection of carnivores.

On the first day of the symposium, I attended the sealion training workshop – granted, I do not work with sealions! However, animal training is a core part of my role here at Suffolk Owl Sanctuary, so it was really exciting learning about other zoo’s training techniques and cooperative care. Cooperative care is the training of animals by which they willingly partake in their own health checks, wellbeing, and care; this prevents the need of restraint for basic health checks or minor medical procedures. This is something we already do here at SOS, but it is always useful to expand your knowledge in this ever-growing field of animal care and welfare. The keepers were so friendly and knowledgeable, so it was fantastic sharing our training ideas, thoughts, and experiences.

The sealion training workshop was an excellent way to see cooperative care health check training in action.

I loved listening to the talk about the training and enrichment of ex-pet parrots. Here at Suffolk Owl Sanctuary, a small handful of our birds have come from challenging circumstances or may have learned some undesirable behaviours at previous settings; therefore, the talk furthered my knowledge of enrichment devices and training tools I may bring into effect to help with some of these behaviours in our own birds.

The symposium agenda was packed full of interesting upcoming research and project talks. It was really encouraging to see talks about conservation projects locally and abroad, but I did notice some gaps surrounding native species; it has inspired me to hopefully submit my own presentation, as I would love to talk about the conservation and rehabilitation work we do here at SOS at next year’s symposium.

Izzy at the ABWAK symposium, hosted by Yorkshire Wildlife Park.

I did submit some posters about the work we do at SOS to the ABWAK Poster Competition; this is to pass on useful knowledge or techniques to other keepers. Whilst my poster didn’t place (no prize money for me!) I’m incredibly proud of the work I produced, and upon speaking to other delegates from bird-related settings, they were very impressed with the management techniques and high-quality welfare of our birds – mission accomplished!

It was wonderful meeting so many like-minded individuals; I have hopefully made some new connections which may result in some future collaborations with Suffolk Owl Sanctuary, so watch this space!

Overall, it was an incredible weekend.

The ABWAK symposium – it was a beautiful setup! Izzy had never attended a conference with a disco glitterball before!

Subtle signs of injury

All birds of prey are experts in hiding illnesses and injury as a survival tactic to be unnoticed by other predators and animals – which can make it quite tricky to discern the cause of an issue when a bird is brought into the hospital.  

This Barn Owl was found face down in a field by a concerned landowner, thinking it was deceased. It was gently moved until it was noticed a foot was still moving. It was then wrapped up in a dry towel and brought into the warm where it was then transferred to us.

Knowing the condition it was found in, we were expecting to either see a bad injury or severe emaciation or disease to cause this amount of visible exhaustion, which is sadly a very common sight in Barn Owls. Surprised to say on initial inspection there were no obvious signs of trauma or disease. The body was well muscled, and aside from looking a bit bedraggled, looked in good health!

It was only on closer inspection we noticed a very small area that could point to an area of injury. Can you see it??

It looks small, but in the parted feathers, a slight pink tinge gave away an area of trauma that caused a small bleed – otherwise unnoticed under all the feathers!

As the feathers were parted further it was evident this Barn Owl had suffered an impact due to the level of bruising there was around the chest and body. Bruising appears as bright green on birds, due to the underlying yellow colour of the skin, and heavy bruising appears almost black!

 Without close inspection this clear indication of trauma could have been missed very easily – now it was evident this Barn Owl likely suffered a nasty car clip whilst in flight, it can be treated with the appropriate care for recovery.

Needless to say he was very lucky, albeit having a bit of a headache. 

This lucky Barn Owl will be cared for in our Raptor Hospital to recover from his injuries, before being taken back to where he was found for release.

British Science Week

Last week, Susan, our Education Officer, joined with STEMPOINT East to deliver a fun fact-filled virtual session on Raptor Factors to launch British Science Week!

Over 60 schools from across the Eastern region attended to learn about the beautiful birds that we work with every day. Susan covered what is a Raptor, what they eat, where they live and went into detail about some of the amazing adaptations they have to help them survive.

At the end of the session, Susan stayed online to answer questions, but was inundated by the number and many were left unanswered! However, she was able to copy them over from the chat function and has now been able to answer them all.

“I love the challenge of opening the floor to questions, as I never know what I’m going to get! This session certainly proved that and I’ve actually learnt a bit trying to find the answers to some of the questions I was asked!”

Some of these questions will feature in new fact sheets and resources coming later this year.

As part of the British Science Week campaign, STEMPOINT East have launched a Create-a-Bird Challenge which schools can register for here. Susan has been invited to be part of the judging panel so is looking forward to seeing all the entries next month!

Following this session, we’ve received a number of enquiries from schools who missed this event. We are happy to offer this 30-minute virtual session to schools who feel unable to visit us in person. Please contact us for more information.

All KS2 and the teachers really enjoyed the talk.  Year 6 spent the rest of the morning thought showering about what they had learnt, and rating the presentation out of five stars. The feedback was incredible and lots of five star ratings. Thank you so much for today-you were amazing.

Thank you so much! Really informative and enjoyable! Learnt a lot.

Thank you so much, Susan.  We have learnt such a lot about birds this morning. We are interested in the challenge. 

Thank you so much. We have learnt so much and found it extremely interesting.

Thank you for your time and knowledge.  Really inspired us for our STEM design a bird competition.

We have really enjoyed the session. Susan, you clearly have a huge knowledge of birds and you present your knowledge and passion extremely well. Thank you so much.