Cheshire Wildlife Trust says it has been thrilled by the breeding success of a number of special birds at its Bickley Hall Farm headquarters this year.
Earlier this month, Broxton Barn Owl Group visited the farm near Malpas to check out the dedicated barn owl boxes which are positioned around the site.
It was the first time that the group has discovered two of the boxes being occupied with adults and chicks.
During their visit the group also recorded and ringed a nest of five kestrel chicks located close-by.
“This was extremely surprising as barn owls and kestrels don’t usually tolerate each other, so finding them nesting successfully about 6ft away from each other is fairly unheard of,” explained Ben Gregory, part of the Cheshire Wildlife Trust’s expert conservation team.
Ben added: “Broxton Barn Owl Group are a voluntary organisation who work tirelessly to erect barn owl nest boxes and monitor barn owl numbers in Cheshire – it is fantastic that we have their support to help monitor the boxes at our nest sites at our reserves.”
A further two nest boxes were successful this year at the trust’s Gowy Meadows Nature Reserve – with a total of six chicks between them.
There has also been some exciting news about some smaller feathered rarities at Bickley Hall Farm. This is the first year the trust has seen breeding success of tree sparrows.
Tree sparrows have seen huge declines (93% decline between 1970 and 2008) and have the unenviable status of being a ‘red-listed’ bird of conservation concern, like the barn owl.
Ben said: “As part of our countryside stewardship scheme at Bickley Hall Farm we do everything we can to support a whole host of farmland birds and tree sparrow are no exception.
“Every year we plant five acres of seed rich crops, specifically for farmland birds, and last year we put up forty tree sparrow nest boxes around the farm.
“We were thrilled to see that our hard work has paid off and we have been able to confirm that tree sparrows have bred here, and not only that they’ve taken up residence in some of our new nest boxes.”
Wildlife-friendly field margins and hedgerows are a key feature at Bickley Hall Farm. They create wildlife corridors, which support a whole host of species – including barn owls and kestrels.
Cheshire Wildlife Trust has been acting as a voice for wildlife in the region for more than 50 years.
Working across Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Halton, Stockport, Warrington, Tameside, Trafford and Wirral, it manages around 40 nature reserves with habitats ranging from grasslands and wet meadows to reedbeds, coastal dunes and woodland.
