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Helpston's wildlife

Barn owl

The barn owl is a distinctive bird if it is seen hunting just before dark in the fields north of Helpston. It also has a very distinctive call [click to listen] earning it the name of screech owl.

Barn owls still breed around Helpston. Over the last few years they have mainly been found to the north of the village and they can be seen hunting along Maxey Road at any time of year.

In 2007, however, they returned to two locations south of the village - occupying both new and old sites - and being seen hunting around Royce Wood in the evening.

In remains to be seen how well they will prosper in these new haunts - the extreme rain fall in June and July 2007 will have made it very difficult for them to successfully raise young, as barn owls, with their very fine, easily water-logged feathers, cannot hunt in wet conditions.