Barn Storming Owl Wins Vote

Barn Owl (photo: Steve Valentine).

The Barn Owl has won a ballot to find Britain's favourite farmland bird.

This silent hunter of dusk and dawn won 780 of the 2541 votes sent to the RSPB and cast on the Society's website.

Numbers of Barn Owls have dropped from 12,000 pairs in England and Wales in the 1930s to fewer than 4,000 in the late 1990s when the last count took place. Breeding success is thought to have been poor since then. The conversion of barns and renovation of derelict buildings, and the loss of prey-rich grassland, is thought to be behind the bird's recent decline. The species also suffered from heavy persecution until the 1950s because it was regarded as an ill omen, and pesticide use until the 1960s.

It is the first time a poll has been held to compare the popularity of farmland birds, most of which have suffered heavy losses in the last forty years.

Skylark (photo: Richard Steel).

The Skylark finished a close second to the Barn Owl, with 711 votes; Lapwings were third (428 votes) and Yellowhammers fourth (288 votes).

Dr Sue Armstrong Brown, Head of Countryside Policy at the RSPB, said: "Farmland birds are popular for their songs, their dramatic courtship displays and, in the case of the Barn Owl, their stealth, mystery and beauty.

Lapwing (photo: Richard Bedford).

"But they have been declining for some years and we staged the vote as a fun way to draw attention to their plight. Progress has been made through green farming schemes and the work of conservation-minded farmers, but there is still a long way to go before farmland birds are out of trouble."

The 19 farmland birds used as a guide by the government have dropped overall by more than 40 per cent since 1970. Concern was heightened last week when the EU shelved for a year the requirement for farmers to leave some of their land, called set-aside, free of food crops.

Species such as Skylarks, Woodlarks and Linnets have thrived on set-aside because of the profusion of weeds and insects no longer found in arable crops. The RSPB is urging the UK government to boost funds for green farming schemes before set-aside is abolished permanently, to replicate its environmental benefits.

Dr Armstrong Brown said: "The loss of set-aside could severely dent the progress made towards helping birds like the Skylark, Lapwing and Yellowhammer. Increasing the incentives available to farmers to keep land fallow and retain grassland for hunting Barn Owls will go a long way towards meeting the government's target for helping these scarce species recover."

Linnet (photo: George Ewart).