My friend Lesley and I had a fantastic view of a Tawny Owl tonight at 16:26 in Sydenham Hill Woods, we heard it hoot a few times before Lesley spotted him (the sound suggests a male) alighting on a large tree, about 15 feet up, and 15 or so feet away from us, the owl glared back at us then looked away, hooted again and got a reply in the darkness from another male, then flew off, apparently females don't do the 'twoo' or hoot sound we so clearly heard. We couldn't have asked for a finer view. I was surprised by how large the owl was and how magnificent the markings were, this was a thrilling experience, what a week - first the Little owl on Streatham Common on Monday and now the Tawny on Friday.
This week's experience of seeing owls shows how patience, research, timing and good luck can pay off, these are heartening experiences. It is so encouraging to know that these maginficent animals are able to live in the middle of a huge city like London. I am so glad we still have these precious wild spaces, I remember very clearly the threat to these woods in the 1970s when developers wanted to extend housing into them, thank god they didn't get their way. I'm wondering if the tree he was in might be a song post, a regular place for hunting and singing?
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