Barn owl  (Tyto alba)

Learn about the scientific name of this species and how it fits into the tree of life at Nature Navigator.

Threats

From the middle of the 19th century, this beautiful owl began to decline in Britain. The original decline is thought to have been the result of an increase in persecution. The decline continued as a result of agricultural intensification, poor winter weather, traffic deaths, pesticide use and a loss of hunting and nesting sites (11).

Conservation

Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981, it is illegal to kill, injure or take a barn owl or to remove or damage eggs. The Barn Owl Conservation Network (BOCN), a project of the Hawk and Owl Trust, is promoting a habitat creation scheme, with the provision of nest boxes to help this species (9).

View information on this species at the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.
There may be further information about this species available via the National Biodiversity Network Gateway.
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