Somerset Wildlife Trust’s website is live-streaming video directly from a barn owl box in the Blackdown Hills.
Visitors to the website can watch the progress of barn owl couple, Finn and Orla, who have set up home for the second year in the box.
The trust reports, “The barn owl couple successfully fledged three chicks last year, and the trust is keeping its fingers crossed that the pair will be parents again – this time the experience being shared and enjoyed by people that can now tune in on the trust’s website.
“The live-stream is the trust’s first since 2014, when their barn owl couple, Boris and Brenda, became instant internet sensations, attracting over a million and a half visits from people all over the world who tuned in to see seven eggs hatch – an unusually large brood.
“The live-stream, funded by the Heritage Emergency Fund and installed by Wildlife Windows, will provide high quality video and sound from the new box, providing viewers with clear and unique view of barn owl family life inside the box for the next six months.”
Kirby Everett, head of communications added, “We are absolutely delighted to have a live barn owl feed up and running this year. Lockdowns have brought many people across the country closer to nature, and made our lives all the richer for it.
“You can’t get much closer than a live feed, so we hope people will really enjoy following the couple’s journey to parenthood and learning about the behaviour of these stunning birds.
“Sharing their world from within our homes will bring nature to many people who are still unable to get the outdoor nature experiences they previously so enjoyed.
“Barn owls, like much of Britain’s wildlife, is declining and if we want to still see these beautiful creatures in the future, we need to restore and connect the habitats they and nature needs, and ensure we act in a nature-friendly way in our lives. Only then are we going to make a dent in the environmental challenges ahead.
“The prospect of future generations of Finn and Orla’s family not having safe homes is not one we want to entertain, and we hope the live feed will inspire everyone to find ways to help nature where they live. We will be providing lots of ideas on the live-feed’s web page, so tune in!”
The live-feed is available at www.somersetwildlife. org/swtbarnowls