About

Barn owls are birds from the similarly-named barn-owl family (there are two families of owls - barn-owl, and true or typical owls). They are nocturnal, which means they mostly come out at night.

Generally, there is no special name for a male or female owl. A baby owl is called an owlet. A group of owls is called a parliament.

Habitat

Their resting places are called roosts. In the UK, barn owls are found across open countryside, farmland, and roadside verges. Their numbers have reduced in London due to the loss of brownfield sites and garden vegetation.

What does it need?

Barn owls eat small mammals, mostly rodents and small birds.

What needs it?

Barn owls are at the top of the food chain. In the UK, they are only preyed upon by buzzards, goshawks, and maybe the odd lucky fox.

Barn owls help to control the population of their prey, like rats and mice, and therefore reduce food-growing loss. They also help to disperse seeds by eating fruit.

Fun fact!

In some areas, barn owls are known as "demon owls" or "screech owls" due to the shrieks they make.

See a video here, and learn more here!