For the seventh year in a row, Essex Wildlife Trust’s Barn Owl webcam is back, live from their Blue House Farm nature reserve in North Fambridge. Barn Owls have successfully reared young in this nest box every year since the Trust started the live broadcasts in 2012 and they are hoping this year will be no different.

The Barn Owl, with its distinctive white heart-shaped face, pure white underparts, apricot and silvery blue mottled back is a beloved British bird usually only spotted flying silently around the countryside in search of food. However, this spring you can witness the secret world of a breeding pair by following the lives of the couple that has already taken residence inside the nest box.

During February the couple mated, so there are high hopes that eggs will be laid during mid-April. Once the eggs are laid, the female will remain in the box to incubate her brood whilst the male goes in search for food for them both. The eggs will hatch after around 31-32 days of incubation.

Essex Wildlife Trust’s Blue House Farm nature reserve is surrounded by 240 hectares of coastal grazing marsh; prime Barn Owl habitat. There is an abundance of their prey, including field voles, wood mice and common shrew which is vital for successful breeding, as the pair of Barn Owls must consume around 5,000 prey items a year.

A loyal ‘Barny Army’ of online followers is consistently growing, with the nest watched avidly by locals in Essex and as far as the USA and New Zealand! To watch the webcam, visit Essex Wildlife Trust’s website www.essexwt.org.uk/barn-owl-webcam.

The nest feed is live and unedited. Footage may be surprising or sometimes disturbing, but as they are wild animals, Essex Wildlife Trust cannot interfere.