Barn Owls in Ireland

Ricardo G

Hi all,
Just a quick thread to say i spotted a stunning barn owl while out walking late this evening. I have never seen one in my 29 years of existence and it felt amazing !! It swooped (slowly) low right in front me into a field but because it was so dark i lost sight, hung around for a few mins but saw nothing. After reading a bit on the net since i understand they are getting quite rare around Ireland which is such a pity, i am not a bird person in general but just said i'd share it with you:)

Mothman

Thanks for sharing this.
Its been many years since I've seen one. I have vivid memories from my youth of a pair of Barn Owls visiting farm yard on a daily basis. My brother and myself would sneak out to the barn and observe

Birdnuts

I've seen Barn Owls in the following counties Mayo(3), Laois(1), Tipp(1), Kildare(2) and Dublin(1). The most usual location was right on the Atlantic coast in Erris Mayo around midnight one september about 5 years ago:)

littlebug

I saw one a couple of years back. Strangely enough it was in almost exactly the same spot my husband had seen one a week or so before. It flew low over my car, keeping in line with (but just in front of) the car for a few seconds before veering off to one side.
I'm assuming it was a barn owl.... how would one know for sure? It was very big and very pale.. obviously looking up at it from below (and trying not to crash).

snowstreams

I have seen one in Majorca, but never in Ireland unfortunately.

Feargal as Luimneach

snowstreams wrote: »

I have seen one in Majorca, but never in Ireland unfortunately.

I'm like you, I've never seen one in Ireland:(, but I've seen one in India:).

Birdnuts

snowstreams wrote: »

I have seen one in Majorca, but never in Ireland unfortunately.

Aren't the ones in Southern Europe much darker than ours??:)

Cardynal

Well done , fantastic bird to see , have had two sightings in the past few years both at the same spot at dusk , as you say quite rare here unfortunately.
Regards Tom.

snowstreams

Birdnuts wrote: »

Aren't the ones in Southern Europe much darker than ours??:)

The one i saw seemed the same colour as the ones we have. It may have been darker but it passed by very quickly in the evening as I was driving across the Island.

java30

I am just watching the Barn owls on the BBC cam http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/uk/webcams/ , pretty amazing to watch.

I was wondering if anybody knew a good place in Ireland to see one? I have always wanted to see a Barn Owl.

Fattes

The old Sports Hotel Kilternan / Ski Club of Ireland has a resident Barn Owl. Can be seen easy enough around there at night fall.

Have spotted him 6 times since March whilst up there training.

Once seen it fly into a window of the vacant apartments :D

I am no Bird Watcher but this looks to be quite a large specimen!

snowstreams

Fattes wrote: »

The old Sports Hotel Kilternan / Ski Club of Ireland has a resident Barn Owl. Can be seen easy enough around there at night fall.

Have spotted him 6 times since March whilst up there training.

Once seen it fly into a window of the vacant apartments :D

I am no Bird Watcher but this looks to be quite a large specimen!

Did you see him recently? Or was it back during the ski season?
It doesnt look like those apartments are going to get finished anytime soon, so hopefully a whole family of them will set up there!

Fattes

Less than 3 weeks ago the ski season does not end up there till the June bank holiday weekend!

The sightings I had where at the tail end of April and right through May

Cardynal

Difficult Bird to observe and there are not too many regular sites in Ireland i'm afraid , the majority of the population is concentrated in the Midlands and South.
Quite often breeds in old ruined castles so keep an eye out for these , it will also use special nesting boxes , quite a few of these have been set up around the country , there are a couple in the Woodstock estate in Kilkenny and i have had a few sightings this year of them heading out to hunt at dusk.

cuddlycavies

I got really close to one here in Greystones during the snow. Wife has seen one locally too. So they're resident here. There is an old mill locally and I would say that's where they nest.

Birdnuts

Appears to be a decent population in the area around Castelrea Co. Roscommon. I've seen this species in nearly every county I've been visited in the last few years including Dublin, Kildare, Laois, Tipp, Mayo and Wicklow:)

tomahawk101

Hi, you can see a barn owl close up, handle her if you wish and take photographs of many Hawks, falcons, other owls from around the world and even meet the recently re-introduced Golden Eagle and Red Kite here at Woodlands Falconry, in Rathwood Tullow, Co. Carlow. Only an hour from Dublin!!

our website is www.woodlandsfalconry.com
or join woodlands falconry on facebook
Regards
Tom

java30

Hi , thanks for all you comments. Seems to be a tough one to see in the wild alright. Might try the Phoenix park, theres a castle there and big open fields. Who knows

Thanks tomahawk101, that place sounds amazing. The golden eagle would be lovely to see up close too. Id say they are impressive.

whyulittle

Is there anything else out there that might sound like a Barn Owl?

I was walking into some wooded cover from the shore of Lough Ree the other day, and something shrieked from the trees. Had a good look around but couldn't see anything.

There's also farmland right by where I was.

This was right in the middle of the afternoon.

thebishop

whyulittle wrote: »

Is there anything else out there that might sound like a Barn Owl?

I was walking into some wooded cover from the shore of Lough Ree the other day, and something shrieked from the trees. Had a good look around but couldn't see anything.

There's also farmland right by where I was.

This was right in the middle of the afternoon.

Might be a longeared Owl.

whyulittle

I had a listen to all three of our Owls on the RSPB site, Barn Owl came closest, followed by the second half of the Short-eared's call.

What I heard wasn't quite as shrill as what they have for Barn Owl.

tired insomniac

i was out having a smoke at about half one in the morning, about 18 months ago in my previous house. the dogs were going toilet down the garden. a big open garden. next thing i heard a screach. pitch black and i sh*t myself! i never herd something like it before. a few seconds later something swooped down and nearly cought my smallest dog, but my bigger fella nearly cought whatever swooped. every night at that time of the morning (from october to april i think it was) was screeching. we couldnt figure out what it was until my dad dropped me home from the pub one night and on his way home a barn owl flew across his windscreen. i said it to another fella i new that lived there and he said that theres an owl in one of the barns down the road but doesnt no where. the screech was like a lady getting attacked but louder! she was a big bird. i never saw the coulours though as it was pitch black every time i saw it but my dad recognised it straight away. we went on the internet searching for barn owl sounds and the same chilling sounds played! (sorry for long post!!)

wildlifeboy

Seeing wildlife from the comfort of a pub bench while drinking and smoking is always nice...saw the red deer and an otter in the lake hotel killarney sitting out on a lovely evening. the white tails eluded me! :cool:

It wasn't me!

wildlifeboy wrote: »

Seeing wildlife from the comfort of a pub bench while drinking and smoking is always nice...saw the red deer and an otter in the lake hotel killarney sitting out on a lovely evening. the white tails eluded me! :cool:

You'll have to do some work for those. Saw one while deer stalking in the mountains outside Killarney last year. Incredible. We were sitting in on a clearing in the snow and he was just up the hill from us at the base of a tree, also watching for prey. Was absolutely brilliant.

bibio

I can often call Barn Owls in by using an electronic caller using the rabbit in distress call. If you stay hidden and still they will almost land on top of you, searching for the distressed rabbit.
Often see them while sea trout fishing also, far form common, but having said that more numerous than you would think. Have seen tem regualry in Wicklow and Wexford.

Crann na Beatha

This post has been deleted.

rkennedy80

Spotted a Barn Owl at the 1st hole in the Island Golf Club. A bit of thrill as Ive never seen one before, beautiful bird.

magicbastarder

saw my first one a month or two back near ashbourne - i had heard before that there are a few around the area.

Bsal

There is a report of a Barn Owl found dead at Rogerstown today I hope it wasn't poisoned

http://www.irishbirding.com/birds/web/Display/sighting/44329/Barn_Owl.html

Traonach

Bsal wrote: »

There is a report of a Barn Owl found dead at Rogerstown today I hope it wasn't poisoned

http://www.irishbirding.com/birds/web/Display/sighting/44329/Barn_Owl.html

Highly likely given the amount of poison laid about the dump there. Unfortunately alot of the Red Kites have met a similar demise

whyulittle

Barn Owl webcam from BWI/Mooney Goes Wild

http://www.rte.ie/radio/mooneygoeswild/features/mooneycam/

Anyone watching the webcam? -I'm switching between it and the opening ceremony in London. I think the owl babies are doing more for me.

whyulittle

They've been fed twice in the past half hour.

I put the stream on after inthehat mentioned it. I forgot I had it playing, and then they started squawking when I had my Jay picture open......was wondering what the hell was going on!

Aww no - I've missed those two feedings! Broadband isn't great here and it times out a lot. It's back now again though. They're so cute!!

whyulittle

A Blackbird or Starling just landed on the entrance and got a surprise when it saw what was in there!

WildIreland

Thought you might like this column from the Irish Independent on a recent barn owl encounter close to home in West Cork.

emo72

i can only see one chick. has one died?

ahhh....i see the second one now. all's well again. must have been hiding under the camera or something.

vicwatson

emo72 wrote: »

i can only see one chick. has one died?

ahhh....i see the second one now. all's well again. must have been hiding under the camera or something.

I'm looking at two, one keeps legging it outside and hissing, the other looks pissed off and hasn't wandered, what is the story?

vicwatson

Wow, it's a great show. Is one older, and maybe peed off ??

vicwatson

Saw the first flight Sunday night about 22.00 hours of one of the male fledglings, amazing, watching again now, damnn they like their fodder, they like Mice (that's what I think it is). AND THEY NEVER FIGHT EACH OTHER FOR THE FOOD - What's with that?

whyulittle

http://www.rte.ie/radio/mooneygoeswild/features/mooneycam/

Still going strong, camera inside and outside the box now.

whyulittle

Female chick chases a rat into a bucket of oil!

http://www.rte.ie/radio/mooneygoeswild/fp2012/barnowlblog.html

oldfart

When i was a child I used to see them regularly on long summer evenings.
I used to hide behind a wooden fence and wait to see them swooping down their usual dusk path. one eve, I was so still, one nearly flew into my face lol.. It was nice to see one so close up, they have a beautiful face. The countryside in my area changed a lot over the years and I haven't seen one in about 15 - 18 years..and it wasn't for the want of looking, they just aren't around any more - too many silage fields and not enough hay fields.

swifts need our help!

saw one on Wednesday, Co. Down, and another last night in Fermanagh. Not bad considering how rare they are in the north. Three in a year and hadn't seen any since the 80s.

Mark
N Ireland

Bsal

I didn't get a chance to listen to Derek today, but my mother told me they were saying the Barn Owl covered in oil has died anyone else confirm this?

whyulittle

Top of the blog.

Our live Barn Owl stream has now been taken down; our male owlet fledged successfully, but unfortunately his sibling died after she became coated in oil whilst hunting a rat...

Gamb!t

I got to see some Owls in Tipp last month at a medieval festival.Don't have any pics of the Barn Owls but this Eagle Owl was a magnificent sight.
http://s13.photobucket.com/albums/a284/wiggy69/Owl/