Table of Contents 1.

Birds never cease to surprise me. When we moved into our farm over 30 years ago, I had been told that barn owls were occasionally seen haunting our valley. But we did not need to wait long to catch a glimpse during our first spring. At the time I had regular links to the county wildlife trust and even chaired the organisation for several years. This gave me the opportunity to consult some of their barn owl experts. Over the following year I began filming a new BBC wildlife documentary called ‘The Farm That Time Forgot’. The location was conveniently just over a half hours’ drive from home. That farm was owned and managed by two brothers in a very traditional way. They had a small dairy herd and flock of sheep. With little or no input of modern fertilisers or chemical weed control, their wildlife haven seemed to be caught in a time warp. Even their fields were only tended only by a couple of veteran tractors with a few well-worn implements to match.

By midsummer their harvest of hay was cut, dried and small baled. The resident barn owls were obviously well used this occasional intrusion, only briefly vacating their nest site situated at one end of one of an old stone field barn. When all the hay bales had been piled high inside, peace descended again and the owls returned. Then as the last tractor pulled a flatbed trailer, crawled its way up the sloping field, an owl silently slipped back inside the building. Obviously keen to continue brooding its fluffy white chicks. As the evening sky dimmed, I then film the barn owls several times returning with freshly caught food for their family.

More amazing, these owls had nested here for decades. So, I reasoned this must be a perfect place for these rare birds. Then, long after their youngsters had flown and while the parent birds where away, I took the opportunity with some licensed owl experts to measure and photograph the interior of the barn. A few weeks later I replicated that layout, down to a scattering of hay bales, inside our own barn. Much to my amazement it took only a few months before we had our own resident owls. Still easily seen from our kitchen window in all but the wettest weather.

I knew that barn owls tend to avoid heavy rain, mainly because their ultra-soft feathers aiding their silent flight, lacked water-repellent oils. However, a few captive owls had been observed during very hot weather to occasionally open their their wings during summer showers. Presumably to cool off or gently wash their plumage. A habit rarely if ever seen in wild owls. So, imagine my surprise earlier this year when I briefly witnessed this rare behaviour by our nesting birds. Then again, just a few days ago and this time with binoculars to hand I spotted a barn owl in the dim morning light. It was high on a wooden post, wings drooped but clearly enjoying a light shower of fine drizzle. A very special bird bath.