BARN OWLS - ORGANIC RODENT CONTROL
Looking for an environmentally safe solution for rodent control? The answer may be in your own backyard: the Barn Owl. Of the three owl species commonly found year-round in the Los Angeles area, the Barn Owl has the greatest ability to manage rodent populations. With the Wild Wings Backyard Nature Barn Owl Box, you can entice these magnificent predators into your own backyard. Are you a pet owner? Don’t worry! The tiny Pocket Gopher is considered sizeable pray for a Barn Owl, so if a pet weighs over 10oz, it’s completely safe around these nocturnal hunters.
Unlike many other owl species, the Barn Owl is not territorial and is willing to share its hunting space with others of its kind. Barn owls respond directly to rodent populations by producing the amount of young per brood that the current rodent population can support, sometimes even producing multiple broods. Because of their amazing hunting skills and their ability to have many young, a Barn Owl family can consume over 2500 rodents per year!
A Barn Owl laid eight eggs in this box - the center one is hatching!
Barn Owls are quite tolerant of humans - this mother is completely undeterred by my presence.
These two siblings are from the same box and are about 14 days apart in age. The bird on the left, only days old, is too young to be banded.
Just banded adult Barn Owl.
Checking one of our Barn Owl Boxes for evidence of activity.
Poisons are not the answer to a rodent issue, in the long run it will only make the problem worse. As of spring 2015, in many communities throughout California including Los Angeles, certain rodenticides (anticoagulants) are no longer available to consumers. Unfortunately, pest control companies are still allowed to use them and poisoning of wildlife and pets will remain a problem. If you are using a professional abatement service, either for rodents or insects, make sure they are not using poison of any kind (the box pictured below is a poison dispenser). If they insist on using poisons, please consider ending the service.
And please, do not put out poison yourself. Barn Owls are hard-wired to seek out rodents - give them a home and they will do the work for you!