Barn owl webcam

For many of us, the barn owl livestream in the Blackdown Hills has become far more than a wildlife camera.

Since 2020, we’ve watched these remarkable barn owls raise their young, with 19 owlets successfully fledging from the nest box. This year, there are currently six owlets growing fast in the box, with a couple more weeks before they are ready to fledge. Together, thousands of viewers from all over the county, country and beyond have shared every moment — first eggs, first feeds, first flights, sibling squabbles, late-night prey deliveries, and the quieter moments too. Along the way, your passionate online community formed around the camera.

Since launching the livestream, more than 165,000 people have visited the Somerset Wildlife Trust website to follow the owls and engage with nature in this unique way, while our community discussion has grown into tens of thousands of comments from you, who care deeply about these birds and their future - which we know is a positive one given their success story so far.

We know this livestream means a great deal to many people, so we wanted to share an important update openly and early.

At the end of this 7th breeding season, Somerset Wildlife Trust will lose access to this site, which is on a private small holding not on a Trust reserve. This means that this will be the final season we will be running the livestream from this particular nest box. Viewers should be assured that there are no changes to the site planned and this pair will no doubt continue to raise young here for the foreseeable future - just off camera now.

We know that this news will be hugely disappointing for many of our regular viewers. But while this chapter is coming to an end, our ambition to connect people with wildlife through live cameras is not. We are now proactively exploring opportunities to set up new wildlife cameras in different locations, using the technology installed in 2022 as the foundation for a future livestream project. Watch this space.

For now, our focus is on giving this incredible owl family — and this special community — the send-off they deserve. Thank you for watching with us, learning with us, and caring so deeply about these barn owls over the years.

Best wishes, Alison

Email: alison.howson-french@somersetwildlife.org

On 11th May we successfully ringed all 6 owlets and wonderfully, managed to also ring Trude, who was in the box when we arrived. 

BTO licensed ringer Roger Dickey was on hand to lead the ringing process, measuring wings and making sure all was well with the growing family before safely putting them all back in the box.