How I Built a Deluxe Box for Little Owls to Nest In | My Wildlife Hacks | Robert E Fuller

I've built the perfect residence for little owls. It's made from a twisted trunk of ash wood and even has an attractive porch from which they can watch the world go by. You can watch more of my wildlife hacks in this series: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLx09JDaWUEFP6Foj2Hd1VSueqZK4pfdsB And find more little owl films here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLx09JDaWUEFMnThOrQa8lrbJkaoSUq2h6 *JOIN MY MISSION* ____________________ You can support my wildlife rehabilitation and conservation work by donating here: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=A52ZHAMJZC3J4 or joining one of my supporter communities: https://www.robertefuller.com/support_and_donate/ *ABOUT THIS FILM* ____________________ A complex camera project The project has taken me months to complete, but I'm hoping that if the owls nest here I will be able to study the secret world of this tiny owl species. Ash Wood I chose to target little owls after watching a pair in an ash woodland near my home on the Yorkshire Wolds. Building the little owl box My new little owl nest box is made from a six foot long branch of divided ash wood, laid on its side. I used the part of the branch that forks into two and blocked off the back of it to make an attractive-looking entrance to the box. With a secret tunnel From here I built a tunnel large enough for a little owl to creep through but too small for jackdaws to get through, since these birds would take over if they could. And a jackdaw 'baffle' I even placed a wooden baffle, which creates a corner for the little owls to navigate before they drop into the nest box. Jackdaws would struggle to get the sticks they carry to make their nests from round this - I wanted to make it as awkward as possible for jackdaws and as perfect as possible for little owls. Nest box The tunnel leads to a nest box which a little owl must jump 30cms into. The box itself is made from an old metal planter with half a hollow log placed inside it and lined with sawdust, so that it looks natural on the inside. The whole thing is rigged with cameras so that I can watch the owls both inside and outside the nest. And winched into position The box weighs 150kgs and had to be winched into position. I chose a spot where the little owls could sit in the fork of the tree, sheltered from the wind as if they are out on their own little porch. They will be able to watch out for prey from here. Inquisitive little owls Just four days after the nest box was in, a male little owl arrived to inspect it. I love how nosey these owls are. If there is something new in their territory, they can't resist taking a look. This trait was the inspiration for one of my paintings of a little owl, take a look at it here: 'Inquisitive Little Owl'. https://www.robertefuller.com/acatalog/Inquisitive-Little-Owl-Print-ZILO.html#SID=4 Watching little owls So far I've been able to watch a pair at the nest, but I've still got my fingers crossed they choose to nest here. If they don't, there's always next year. Last year's little owls Click here to read my story and see the photographs I took when little owls nested in my nest box last year: https://www.robertefuller.com/diary/photographing-little-owls/ Watch little owls live If you want to watch the little owls you can tune in to my ash wood livestream here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLx09JDaWUEFPocIUijCjOMU5rY8a_QugD More about Ash Wood Ash Wood is my latest wildlife livestream project. I have developed this woodland habitat by digging a pond and putting up nest boxes designed to attract a range of different species. *ABOUT ME* ____________ I am a British wildlife artist and filmmaker on a mission to share my love for wildlife with the world. As well as creating detailed animal film and art portraits, I promote wildlife tours around the world and do all I can to help conserve and protect wildlife here at my home in Yorkshire. I hope that by putting nature in the frame I can foster a deep love for wildlife amongst my followers. You may like to purchase my artwork which you can find on my website: https://www.robertefuller.com. Many of my paintings are portraits of the wonderful characters you watch here! You can also follow me on these platforms: Website: https://www.robertefuller.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RobertEFullerArt/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RobertEFuller Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/RobertEFuller/ ___________________ © Robert E Fuller Copyright Disclaimer: Please feel free to share my videos but do not download any content without permission with the intent to re-upload. If you would like to license any content, please get in touch: [email protected] #robertefuller #littleowl #owl #wildlifehacks