Probably one of the most frequently asked questions that we receive from prospective and excited clients regarding their new owl box is: ‘How long before we have owls?’
Perplexing question – 15 years on and this is still something we are unable to answer. What we can tell you is based on the 150 plus EcoSolutions owl boxes that are serviced and occupied nationally. We have experienced owls occupying owl boxes within two weeks from the installation date however, this is far from the norm.
The large majority of our occupied owl boxes have taken anything from two to five years before occupancy occurs. That is the reality of it, you could be waiting for five years for occupancy to occur. That is if you experience occupancy at all.
The data that we have collected over the course of this project has allowed us to provide you with a blueprint which ensures that everything that can be done to create a viable owl breeding site, has been done. I
t must be stated that for us to collect and interpret data collected through this programme, the unoccupied boxes are just as important to our findings as the occupied ones.
Occupancy trends can be established, areas with low occupancy can be identified and perhaps corrected. It is through the collation of information that this project produces the results that it does.
At this stage, one thing that we can say is that our data clearly confirms that the potential occupancy of your owl box is directly related to its annual service and maintenance.
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