Tengmalm's Owls

Photo: a Tengmalm's Owl ringed at Falsterbo (south-western Sweden) at the weekend, courtesy of Falsterbo Bird Observatory

As well as Nutcrackers there seems to be an irruption of Tengmalm's Owls this autumn. Falsterbo has just ringed its first Tengmalm's Owl since 1986 and there were several other birds in the garden of the observatory that didn't make it into the nets. At Ottenby in south-eastern Sweden they ringed 20 and 40 Tengmalm's Owls on Saturday and Sunday respectively. This is the first major invasion for some time and hopes are high that we could see a repeat of the 1967 invasion when over 200 were ringed at Falsterbo. There are surely several in Denmark right now and what price a bird on Fair Isle or the east coast of the UK this autumn??