Tawny Owls in Dublin?

Shrubz

I was out in my garden tonight(its a very still night) in Dublin and I heard what I was sure was an owl or some sort of bird of prey. I looked up Irish owl sounds on the web as it was pretty unusual, and came across the Tawny owl's sound. This is exactly what I heard. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PTX7OTX4nE

I know they are not supposed to be in Ireland but this is the exact sound I heard. I live near the Phoenix park, I wonder has anybody else seen or heard Tawny owls in Dublin lately?

dodderangler

Shrubz wrote: »

I was out in my garden tonight(its a very still night) in Dublin and I heard what I was sure was an owl or some sort of bird of prey. I looked up Irish owl sounds on the web as it was pretty unusual, and came across the Tawny owl's sound. This is exactly what I heard. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PTX7OTX4nE

I know they are not supposed to be in Ireland but this is the exact sound I heard. I live near the Phoenix park, I wonder has anybody else seen or heard Tawny owls in Dublin lately?

As a falconer myself I know loads of people who lose their birds a lot by no fault of their own
I.e. the bird managing to pick at its leash and undo the knot
But owls seem to have a way to escape so I've heard so wouldn't surprise me if it belongs to someone that lost it

Desmo

Shrubz wrote: »

I was out in my garden tonight(its a very still night) in Dublin and I heard what I was sure was an owl or some sort of bird of prey. I looked up Irish owl sounds on the web as it was pretty unusual, and came across the Tawny owl's sound. This is exactly what I heard. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PTX7OTX4nE

I know they are not supposed to be in Ireland but this is the exact sound I heard. I live near the Phoenix park, I wonder has anybody else seen or heard Tawny owls in Dublin lately?

There were Long Eared Owls in the park a while back; not sure if there are any now but they are widespread in Ireland. This vid has some
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0KeG6r5GoY
It is very faint but you can hear a high pitched squeak. Young LE Owls are supposed to sound like squeaky gates.

This is the adult: http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/l/longearedowl/index.aspx


Which end of the park is it?

Des

Shrubz

Desmo wrote: »

There were Long Eared Owls in the park a while back; not sure if there are any now but they are widespread in Ireland. This vid has some
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0KeG6r5GoY
It is very faint but you can hear a high pitched squeak. Young LE Owls are supposed to sound like squeaky gates.

This is the adult: http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/l/longearedowl/index.aspx


Which end of the park is it?

Des

Ive heard and seen(and photographed- pic below) young Long eared owls in the Phoenix park before but this was different. It was unusual and didn't sound like a Long-eared at all but I guess it will remain a mystery. The bird really did sound like a Tawny owl http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PTX7OTX4nE, but Im sure its possible for it to be a something else. I guess Il never know

whyulittle

There was a post on the BWI FB page today - the poster's friend reportedly seen one on a fence post in Wicklow Town.

Desmo

Shrubz wrote: »

Ive heard and seen(and photographed- pic below) young Long eared owls in the Phoenix park before but this was different. It was unusual and didn't sound like a Long-eared at all but I guess it will remain a mystery. The bird really did sound like a Tawny owl http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PTX7OTX4nE, but Im sure its possible for it to be a something else. I guess Il never know

Wow; cool pic :-)
If there are tawny owls there, then that would be mega!
One way to tell easily is if they "hoot".
You never hear the classical owl toowhittoowooo in Ireland but Tawny Owls do it. I am not sure which time of year they do it but you can hear it for over a kilometer away on a clear night and is unmistakable.

That RSPB page has a link to a recording of LE Owl calls which sound a bit like the tawny owl one.
http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/l/longearedowl/index.aspx

Des

Ulmus

On two occasions I have heard what sounded to me like the" ke-wik" call of a tawny owl in Glasnevin - last December close to a housing estate by the Royal Canal and last night at 3am in my back garden not far from the Botanic Gardens. I've only ever heard tawny owls on online recordings. Strange. Maybe I'm hallucinating.

bogman

Heard a Tawny Owl in a wooded area near Cork last night, unmistakable warbly call ...

WildIreland

Shrubz wrote: »

I was out in my garden tonight(its a very still night) in Dublin and I heard what I was sure was an owl or some sort of bird of prey. I looked up Irish owl sounds on the web as it was pretty unusual, and came across the Tawny owl's sound. This is exactly what I heard. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PTX7OTX4nE

I know they are not supposed to be in Ireland but this is the exact sound I heard. I live near the Phoenix park, I wonder has anybody else seen or heard Tawny owls in Dublin lately?

Just a suggestion, given how unlikely tawny owl is. Could it have been something different entirely?

In the past, I've heard "strange" bird sounds in the night... which on further investigation have turned out not to be birds at all. Foxes, for example, have a remarkable repertoire of squeaks, yips and yelps... not all of which are obvious and some of which sound very bird-like. I've heard foxes make sounds remarkably like the squeaking call of a tawny owl before.

Always worth thinking a little outside the box when it comes to unusual sounds in the dark.

bogman

The second call here is exactly what I heard three times around 9pm on the outskirts of the west side of Cork last weekend, reason I am so sure is that I camped up in Kyleakin in the Isle of Skye around October alongside a wood, never heard a Tawny before but one was calling through the night, it was quite close to me, locals confirmed that it was in fact a Tawny owl, I sent in a text to the relevant authorities stating what I heard but it was not acknowledged.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bBLGlRoWsM
It would seem that they either didn't believe me or that Tawny owls are as common as Glaucous Gull & Atlantic Gulls in these parts.