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Original poster

Just heard an owl, inner London

39 replies

Bloodybridget · 15/05/2020 01:06

I'm so excited! It was a tawny owl, I am quite old and have lived in London all my life and never heard this before. We did used to hear them when we had a house in Suffolk. This one sounded very close. I know they have been heard in an old cemetery about half a mile away, but rarely.

OP posts:
Horsemad · 15/05/2020 01:08

We have them in our garden but we are in the countryside, so not unexpected. 🙂

I love hearing them!

2old4thissite · 15/05/2020 01:11

Not for much longer you won't Sad

DramaAlpaca · 15/05/2020 01:12

Oh wow, how exciting!

I saw an owl a few months ago while out for a walk at dusk. I'm on the edge of a village so quite rural, but had never seen one close up. It flew over my head and was so clear because it was backlit by a street lamp. I was utterly mesmerised. Then I literally ran home so I could tell DH & DS all about it.

KingsHeathen · 15/05/2020 01:15

We hear them all the time, inner city.
Some are very vocal!

Lucked · 15/05/2020 01:16

I used to hear them as a child (lived near a wood) And would hear one as I fell asleep only realised reading this that I haven’t heard one in years.

PutYourBackIntoit · 15/05/2020 01:19

Tawny owls have such s beautiful, distinctive call. We're lucky to hear hem most nights (SW) but don't remember hearing them until we moved here from London. Lovely feeling!
One of the most magical moments of my life was when a barn owl glided from a tree over mine and my toddlers heads and we felt the wind resistance.

BettyBooJustDoinTheDoo · 15/05/2020 01:20

We have owls that live in the woods behind my garden, i find the sound eerie but comforting at the same time.

Singinginshower · 15/05/2020 01:23

Do you think it's anything to do with recent changes in your local environment Bridget, or just coincidence that you have a new feathered neighbour?

Original poster
Bloodybridget · 15/05/2020 01:27

Thanks for all the responses! I have a local friend who is very knowledgeable about birds so I'm going to tell her and see what she says. @PutYourBackIntoit and@DramaAlpaca I have had two memorable experiences of seeing owls, once was driving on a quiet road in Norfolk at dusk, when a pale coloured owl was flying in front of us for quite a while, and secondly when DP and I were in a huge old barn in Suffolk and an owl was swooping to and fro the length of the roof.

OP posts:
JustStayHome · 15/05/2020 01:29

Always hear an owl at my nans, Shes South West London, Been around afew years

Original poster
Bloodybridget · 15/05/2020 01:31

@1Littleweed I don't know, I have certainly read that wildlife is more prolific in urban areas since lockdown, we do hear a lot of birds in our v small garden, there are plenty of trees and shrubs, but nothing unusual, lots of tits and robins as well as magpies, crows, etc. It would be brilliant if the owl stayed around!

OP posts:
DamnYankee · 15/05/2020 01:38

Oh, darn. Was hoping you'd got a letter from Hogwarts.
Not being cheeky...just hopeful...(sigh)

Original poster
Bloodybridget · 15/05/2020 01:41

@DamnYankee perhaps it's come down the chimney, shall I go and look Grin?

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DamnYankee · 15/05/2020 01:41

Because people have been staying in, birds are all over the place. Went for a morning run, felt creepy, looked up - and a huge owl was watching me speculatively from a big tree.
Petite me (backing away, slowly): "Not tasty. Not tasty. Not tasty..."

DamnYankee · 15/05/2020 01:42

@Bloodybridget
Yes, yes! And here's hoping you didn't get into Slytherin!

managedmis · 15/05/2020 01:47

Lovely, really nice to hear nature

Original poster
Bloodybridget · 15/05/2020 01:51

@DamnYankee no, it was Hufflepuff Wink. Sounds like you had a narrow escape, phew!

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ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 02:08

My parents and I had pet tawny owls. AMA!

WinterAndRoughWeather · 15/05/2020 02:17

Seriously ElizabethMainwairing?

I used to live the idea of a pet owl, until I went to an owl sanctuary and realised - as they’re carnivores - the absolutely reek.

I love tawny owls - almost everywhere I’ve lived I’ve been lucky enough to hear them at night. Town and country locations. Currently we’ve got a very noisy family of them which must be living in one of our trees, but I haven’t worked out which one. Next year I’m going to put up some nest boxes with cameras.

ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 02:26

Yes! Seriously. Ours didn't smell bad at all.
They ate rabbit from Sainsbury's (a la Chas and Dave). When we brushed our dog we saved the hair from her in a special cannister and put that on top of the rabbit. You have to do that so that the owls can make pellets.
Pellets are little balls that they cough up (not the technical term!) of stuff that they
can't digest eg bones and fur.

WinterAndRoughWeather · 15/05/2020 02:27

When I was a kid I used to find and dissect owl pellets. So fascinating.

ElizabethMainwaring · 15/05/2020 02:33

Did you! That sounds great. Ours wouldn't have been very interesting.
You're very lucky to have some in your garden. We've got fields and trees around us. Loads of birds, but rarely hear owls. When I hear them it is the sound of my childhood, going to sleep. The males twit, and the females twoo. I feel a bit teary now!

Casino218 · 15/05/2020 02:35

We have quite a number of them here and we are Leeds. We have a great video recording of about 6 of them flying round at night in the wood behind our house. They are Tawny owls too.

Gingerkittykat · 15/05/2020 02:48

I have two sets of woodland around half a mile apart which are near me, at night you can hear owls calling to each other over the gap and I love it every time I hear it.

Lalala205 · 15/05/2020 03:30

We had to quickly crawl on a back road the other night to prevent squishing one that was happily mooching. Heavy birds for a quick take off! Ex neighbour was drop off point for rescue ones and tootled the non release ones to local schools and whatnot for conservation talks in the 'owl wagon' 😁 DS and I were lucky enough to be invited to look at the owlets they were looking after too.