Barn owls are back in the UK - and for once it's thanks to humans

Up to 80% of these distinctive birds now nest in man-made boxes, though encouraging them to set up home takes time, finds one Guardian writer My mum fist-pumped when I told her I had seen a barn owl using a nest box on our farm. She has been trying to coax them in since she moved here 35 years ago. There were signs the owls might be thinking of settling down - we found a pellet (regurgitated fur and bones from rodents) at the base of a nest box in February and splatters of poo below another box. Then last week the eureka moment came when one flew out of a box.  Continue reading...