An exercise in conservation

The Barn Owl Trust became a registered charity in 1988; its practical conservation work in South West England is to create perfect barn owl habitat

For years the Barn Owl Trust has been promoting the links between humans, barn owls and wildlife conservation; advising farmers and landowners that barn owl conservation benefits a huge range of other species.

In 2001 they had the opportunity to begin to practice what they preach.

Whilst the country was in the grip of Foot and Mouth, the Trust received a legacy and negotiated with a neighbouring landowner to purchase a 26-acre field of semi-improved upland pasture. The land had been intensively grazed by sheep for years, the predominant species were rye grass and white clover providing little food or cover for wildlife.

The aim of what was to become known as the Lennon Legacy Project, (named after the lady whose legacy to the Trust made the purchase possible) was to create perfect barn owl habitat and at the same time to use the opportunity to encourage as much other flora and fauna as possible.

The previous owner had farmed the land since the 1950s and his recollections of the valley and particularly the field were recorded. The last barn owls had been seen in the valley in the 1960s, and in the 1970s he received a grant to grub out all but one of the internal hedge banks; the field had originally been eight! Over the years the whole site had been ploughed up and re-seeded.

In 2002 a series of baseline surveys were carried out before things started to change. These included floral, small mammal, moth and insect surveys and a weekly butterfly transect. Posts were erected for 12 camera points to record monthly changes to the land, a couple of telegraph poles were erected for owl nestboxes as the field had no buildings, and the overhead electricity cables were buried. The Trust then sat back and watched the grass grow.

In November 2002 there was great excitement when the first vole hole was found in the area of long grass; field voles are the barn owl’s main prey in Britain. A ten-year management plan for the land was developed and the Trust applied to DEFRA (Department for Food and Rural Affairs) for inclusion in the Dartmoor Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) Scheme to enable access to grant funding. Ironically in 2003 they received a grant to replace one of the original hedgebanks that the previous owner was given a grant to remove in the 1970s. They also bought an old tractor to mow paths through the long grass and hired in contractors to restore and lay a boundary hedge bank, fence the boundary and the two small areas of woodland.

Over the intervening years grants and other legacies have allowed more capital projects such as restoring a stone wall, creating two new ones and replacing another of the original hedgebanks. Further developments included a wooden barn in 2004, two ponds in 2006 and an orchard in 2010.

The first signs of barn owls returning to the valley came in 2004 and the first breeding in 2005. Now not only are there now barn owls in the valley but the number and diversity of other plants, animals, birds and insects encouraged by the Lennon Legacy Project is amazing. This year 28 species of butterflies and seven of bats were recorded.

Creating habitat for Barn Owls really does benefit a host of other wildlife.

To find out more about barn owls, the Lennon Legacy Project or the Trust and its work visit www.barnowltrust.org.uk or telephone 01364 653026. The Trust does not operate a visitor centre and visitors are by arrangement only.