purplevast.blogg.se

Open landscapes and open upland areas are also avoided.Įstablished pairs remain on their breeding territories throughout the year and are strongly territorial. This may explain the absence of the species from many offshore islands and indeed from Ireland. Dispersal of young birds is restricted, with most individuals only moving a few kilometres, and there appears to be a reluctance to cross large waterbodies. The species requires suitable tree cavities or nest boxes for breeding and so may be limited by their availability. The male may also use the ‘keewik’ contact call, though this is rare during the breeding season females may very occasionally hoot, this being less well phrased than that of the male.Īlthough primarily an owl of broad-leaved and mixed woodland, the Tawny Owl may also occupy conifer plantations, large urban parks and even suburban gardens. The female’s usual call is ‘keewik’, which is used as a contact call.Ī resident pair will often duet, the male hooting and the female dropping her contact call into the pauses between bouts of hooting. The territorial hooting call of a male Tawny Owl is probably the most familiar of UK owl calls, beginning with a drawn out ‘hooo’, followed by a brief pause, before a softer ‘hu’ and then a resonant final phrase of ‘huhuhuhooo.’ This final phrase has a strong vibrato quality to it. The hooting calls of this species can be heard from late autumn and through the winter months, underlining that this is a species that breeds early in the year. Our most familiar owl, the Tawny Owl is found across Britain but is absent from Ireland. The Tawny Owl is a species that favours woodland habitats, but it may also breed in larger rural and suburban gardens.