Animal TBT: Stories that only life can write – eleven years of owl conservation at Quarzwerke
The eagle owl is one of the most impressive native bird species. It has found a home at several quartz works sites. What began as cautious observation has developed into an impressive species conservation project. The many eagle owl chicks that have been born here show that the eagle owls feel at home at the quartz works.
With a wingspan of up to 1.80 meters, the eagle owl is the largest species of owl in Europe. In the past, it had almost disappeared, but thanks to targeted conservation measures, it is returning to its old breeding grounds. Great horned owls usually breed in vertical field walls. However, if there are no rock faces several hundred meters high to be found, a five-meter-high sand wall in an open-cast mine or a spot in the middle of production will do. And so we offer some great breeding sites.
Together with Stefan Brücher, chairman of the Society for the Conservation of Owls, Quarzwerke has provided nesting boxes that offer eagle owls an ideal place to raise their chicks.
The ringing of eagle owls is important and interesting for researchers and eagle owl conservationists. All young birds are recorded using individually numbered rings. During ringing, data on health status and weight, for example, is also recorded. This information helps to monitor the population in the long term.
Eagle owls have been living near the quartz plants for some time now. Since 2014, we have been working with the Society for the Conservation of Owls and are taking a strategic approach to eagle owl conservation. Several eagle owls have been very “successful” at the Frechen, Haltern, and Witterschlick sites, and many young birds have been ringed.
Four years after the nesting box was successfully occupied for the first time, it seemed that the eagle owls were ready for a change of scenery. The male eagle owl chose a former hawk’s nest as a breeding site. And so the ringing took place high up in the tree.
The following year, everything was back in its planned place in Frechen before another move was necessary: in 2021, the eagle owls took over the peregrine falcon nesting box high up on the roof of the plant. Since then, the young birds’ growth can be observed via webcam.
And this year, too, we are expecting the first egg in the coming days!
Link to webcam
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Password: Wanderfalke
