Our Work
The Trust's work - erecting nestboxes
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The provision of nestboxes for use by Barn Owls is one of the most important conservation measures and one of the easiest to implement. Across the UK a wide range of organisations and individuals have erected well over 25,500 Barn Owl nestboxes.
To a large extent, Britain's Barn Owl population has become dependent on the provision and maintenance of nestboxes due to the lack of more natural sites. Nest and roost sites are lost through a wide variety of causes including the general deterioration of traditional farm buildings, unsympathetic barn conversions and loss of hollow trees due to Dutch Elm disease and the general ‘tidying up' of the countryside. Church towers are usually netted-off to prevent access by birds and modern farm buildings are generally unsuitable unless a nestbox is provided.
Barn Owl Trust staff began erecting nestboxes in 1984 and to date the Trust has erected well over 1,000. Many of these are targeted at occupied nest or roost sites that are under direct threat of loss, although we also provide them at unoccupied sites where there is good habitat for Barn Owls but no potential nesting place, or sites where habitat is being created.
Pictures of good Barn Owl habitat
RSPB Leaflet Farming for birds - Barn Owl
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Watch our three minute video
There are three main types of Barn Owl nestbox, those suitable for erection inside agricultural or other buildings, those that can be erected in trees, and pole boxes. Each type has a different method of erection and is used for different situations. Advice on choosing the right nestbox design and on building and erecting owl nestboxes may be found by following the links...
Because we have been dealing with Live Bird Emergency calls for over twenty years we are very aware of the problems caused by poor nestbox designs. Every year we receive numerous calls from people who have found nestling Barn Owls on the ground having fallen from the nest. Fallen young that are unable to get back into the nest usually die from neglect (unless people find them soon enough). Often these problems are caused (or made worse) because the nest-place is unsafe. This has prompted us to radically change our nestbox designs and we try to encourage other groups and manufacturers to modify theirs too.
Live bird emergency calls
What to do if you find a young Barn Owl
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Research and development
Protection of occupied sites
Nestboxes for use in barns & other buildings
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Nestboxes for use on trees
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