There are a lot of differences in the behaviour of tawny owls and barn owls. Barn owls are farmland birds, hunting low over fields with hedges and woodland edge. Tawny owls are more numerous, being much less choosy about their habitat.

Young tawny owls leave the nest when still covered in fluffy baby down. So finding a well grown chick, that looks rather like a cuddly toy, doesn’t necessarily mean there is a problem. If the owlet can perch and is off the ground, mum will deliver food throughout the night.

Barn owl chicks don’t leave the nest till they are fully feathered. Adult barn owls don’t feed their chicks on the ground. The young owls must return to the nest site for food till they are able to hunt for themselves.

So when a barn owl chick was found on the ground at a farm near Beith recently, we knew straight away that something was wrong. The owlet was quite comical looking. It was beginning to shed its thick white baby down, and looked as if it was wearing a fluffy hat. The chick was underweight and dehydrated; obviously it had been without food for some time.

Now this barn owl has a new family. It snuggles up with two other orphan barn owl chicks. Like owlets in the wild, they snatch food, trying to get the biggest share. At Hessilhead there is plenty of food for all the young. Sometimes in the wild this isn’t the case.