A record-breaking tawny owl has astounded experts by becoming a mother again at the ripe old age of 21.The bird, which is nesting in Kershope Forest, Cumbria, was ringed in 1987 and has reached four times the average life expectancy of a tawny in the wild.
Last year she entered the record books as the oldest breeding female of her kind in the wild in the UK.
The "born survivor" has now returned to a nest close to where she was born and hatched three eggs.
Her nest box is one of more than 200 specially built by the Forestry Commission as part of a tawny owl project which has been running in Kershope and the other woods of Kielder Forest since 1980.
Brian Little, a naturalist on the project, said that it was a "fantastic moment" when they found her.
"I had to choke back a tear. She looks terrific and her three new chicks looked very healthy," he said.
"Last year she had two youngsters, so she has gone one better this time.
"She is a born survivor and must be surrounded by an incredibly large extended family, as tawnies tend to stay put in the same area."
If the owl can survive until October, she will become the oldest tawny owl ever recorded in Britain.
pic of the owl:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cumbria/7419121.stm
Last year she entered the record books as the oldest breeding female of her kind in the wild in the UK.
The "born survivor" has now returned to a nest close to where she was born and hatched three eggs.
Her nest box is one of more than 200 specially built by the Forestry Commission as part of a tawny owl project which has been running in Kershope and the other woods of Kielder Forest since 1980.
Brian Little, a naturalist on the project, said that it was a "fantastic moment" when they found her.
"I had to choke back a tear. She looks terrific and her three new chicks looked very healthy," he said.
"Last year she had two youngsters, so she has gone one better this time.
"She is a born survivor and must be surrounded by an incredibly large extended family, as tawnies tend to stay put in the same area."
If the owl can survive until October, she will become the oldest tawny owl ever recorded in Britain.
pic of the owl:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cumbria/7419121.stm
