Owl be seeing you: beautiful bird is safely back in the wild

A YOUNG barn owl discovered injured in a West Cork village is back in the wild after being nursed back to health.

The owlet was spotted in the village square in Rosscarbery last month. Anthony Coakley from Reenascreena was in the village when he noticed the bird.

‘He was in the square but he wasn’t able to fly, and was a bit distressed,’ recalled Anthony.

‘A few people had passed the bird and he wasn’t able to fly away. Myself and a mother and daughter visiting the village from Kenmare could see he was in a bit of trouble so decided we had to do something.

‘I’m not trained or anything but I grew up in a farm and would be around wildlife, so we said we’d try catch it to take it to the vets.’

Anthony said the staff at Nolan’s Bar were very helpful and provided a comfortable and secure box for the owl.

‘Eventually I was able to catch it and put it into the box. His feathers were like the softest thing I’ve ever touched, and he gave a little peck at me as I was trying to get him into the box.’

Safely in the box, they called the CSPCA who asked them to drop the owl to Glasslyn Vets in Bandon.

‘The wonderful staff at Glasslyn gave the owl 24/7 care, even bringing it home at night over the first few days,’ said Anthony.

It’s thought the owl was forced to hunt for food that morning after a run of extremely bad weather and flew into a building or telephone line in the bright and blinding sun. It had an injury under its wing.

But after a few weeks in the special care at Glasslyn, the owl was successfully reintroduced to the wild.

Earlier this year BirdWatch Ireland released the results of a study carried out in summer 2023 which showed the barn owl population in Cork back on the rise after years of decline.

The survey reported an increase in recorded barn owl breeding range of 132% in the county over the last 10 years.

In total, 114 nest sites were found in the county, with the majority of these in ruined and abandoned buildings.