Tawny Owl - 1994

Breeding resident

The Tawny Owl was regarded as a common resident bird by Mathew (1894) and by Lockley et al. (1949), and this remains the case today.

This owl breeds in wooded areas throughout Pembrokeshire, utilising holes in trees and old crow nests, and can also be found in all of the towns, where it nests in buildings. Tawny Owls are only occasional visitors to the offshore islands, mainly during autumn dispersal, though they were present in the breeding season on Caldey during the 1984-1988 Breeding Birds Survey.

At an average density of four to five pairs per tetrad, the total adult population of Tawny Owls in Pembrokeshire is probably between 800 and 1,000 pairs.

Fieldwork 1984-88 (based on 478 tetrads)

Red = breeding confirmed = 57

Orange = breeding probable = 84

Yellow = breeding possible = 60

Total tetrads in which registered = 201 (42.1%)

Donovan J.W. & Rees G.H (1994), Birds of Pembrokeshire