Starting from number eleven there are five new photographs on the Photo Page.
Lake Placid New York, wouldn’t it be nice to have a cottage like that, OK if you have 3 million dollars BETTY CANADA
Lake Placid New York BETTY CANADA
Lake Placid New York BETTY CANADA
Hand Made flower quilt at Shelburne museum, Burlington Vermont. BETTY CANADA
We have been wanting to do a Barn Owl release at Denbury since our first relationship with the Barn Owl Trust three years ago. The release shows another part of what the Trust does for the welfare of the Barn Owls. We didn’t think that it was going to happen this year, with the good weather that we had a the beginning of the Summer no Owlets that had fallen from their nest had been found and handed to the Trust. Then we had the wet spell and a number of orphaned Owlet were found and handed in to the Trust.
In the majority of cases the Owls are released in the areas that they are found. Of course this is not always possible and release sites have to be found. This year a pair are being released at Denbury.
In the seventeen years we have been at the Farm we have never seen a Barn Owl so Denbury is a good location. We have allowed a number of areas close to the Farm Yard to grow rough. The Badger Field being one where the Mobile Aviary is sited. The rough grass allows Mice, Voles and Rats to breed so there is a plentiful source of food in the Badger Field for the Barn Owls. There is another Field within a couple of hundred metres that is rough parkland and various other places very close by.
The mobile aviary is positioned close to the highest place in the Badger Field so that the Barn Owls are able to get the best possible panoramic views of the surrounding fields, farmland and buildings. They will be kept in the mobile aviary for about two weeks so that they are able to get use to the area and noises. In that two weeks we will be feed and water the Owls. The feed we put in last night had been eaten by this morning so they had found the food. After about two weeks the roof will be raised to allow the Owls freedom. They should return to the Aviary for a short period before taking the final journey to freedom. We would like to think that the Barn Owls will choose Denbury as their home. The chance of that is very remote, but the release will hopefully allow us to see Barn Owls over the coming years.
I have fitted an infra-red lamp in the area of the aviary, as long as it is working you should see the Owls on the perches in the aviary. I will put it on after the Badgers have eaten.