Fears for barn owl population as deaths uncovered in Scottish winter

One of the dead owls Credit: ‘TCSMG’
A SURGE in barn owl deaths in Scotland has sparked concern over the worst winter for the species in over ten years.
Land managers have raised concern after details emerged of dead barn owls falling foul of the ravages of the Scottish winter.
Essentially a sub-tropical species with limited ability to adapt to the cold, the nocturnal bird is at the northern limit of its global range in Scotland.
Conservationists say that unlike other owls, they do not have leg feathers, making them susceptible to weather extremes.
Now land managers in one area of Perthshire renowned for high barn owl breeding success fear heavy snows could have spelt the worst winter for the species in over a decade after multiple pictures of deaths were circulated.

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