Latest News, Articles and Announcements

Ghostly pale and strictly nocturnal, barn owls are silent predators of the night world. Lanky, with a whitish face, chest, and belly, and buffy upperparts, this owl roosts in hidden, quiet spaces during the day. By night, they hunt on buoyant wingbeats in open fields and meadows. You can find them by listening for their eerie, raspy calls, quite unlike the hoots of other owls. Certainly not a graceful vocal repertoire but it more than makes up for that in its appearance. Barn owls have large wings and a small body which makes it easy for them to generate lift. So, with just one gentle wing beat, it glides effortlessly through the air and the feeding mouse having its late supper in grasslands become supper itself.

 A Barn Owl family can consume between 2000 and 6000 rodents each year, and so, except for being rather noisy around the nest during breeding, they are of great benefit to farmers.

            In 2019, I volunteered to build nest boxes for this elegant creature toward a project being developed through KUŞKOR. The aim of the project is to pilot barn owl nest boxes at organic farms in North Cyprus. By providing nesting habitat, the owls would be able to make use of a plentiful supply of rats and mice, which the farmers are struggling to control, while also not having to worry about the threat of poison commonly used to control rat and mice numbers. 

We placed five boxes, four in Yesilirmak and one in Alayköy. We had one box with chicks in it during the first season and learned a lot about where and how to place them through trial and error. We have a long way to go at placing nests but this year we will establish more in Lefkosa and Karpaz region. From the remains of prey found in and around the nest at a farm in Yeşilırmak, the owls are clearly having the desired effect on helping the organic farming process. The participating farmer said that the reduction in rodent damage was immediately notable, and that the nest box installation had had a positive effect on their business.

 In time, we hope to help more organic farmers and believe that widespread use of nest boxes could be a game changer, in reducing North Cyprus unfortunate dependence on poison against mammalian pests, which is killing untold numbers of wild birds. Meanwhile, with similar initiatives established by other organisations across Cyprus, hopefully, more beautiful white Barn Owls will flourish while our economies will be better off.