Wildwood owls in flight

The keeper team at Wildwood have been busy training two of our tawny owls to take part in flying displays at the park. After a number of practice sessions behind the scenes the birds have now moved into the woodland areas of the park for training.

The owls, named Falcor and Gimli, have been training in private for a number of months and are now ready to practice flying in the public areas to get them used to flying with visitors around.

Keeper Chris Jewell said “It takes a while to train the owls to fly to the glove as they’re not generally receptive to training and are easily distracted, but we are taking it at a steady pace for the birds and they are coming on very well. We have moved the practice area into the park and so far the customers who have seen the birds in flight have been delighted.”

As well as getting the birds ready for organised displays the training is also a great way to keep the owls both physically and mentally fit, “not only is this the perfect way to exercise the owls, learning to fly to a glove gives them discipline and keeps them entertained” said Chris.

Owls are amongst the most beautiful and iconic animals to live in the British countryside but sadly most people are unlikely to ever see one except in captivity, and even then it is very rare to see an owl in flight. As a conservation charity, Wildwood is dedicated to educating people about British wildlife in as natural a setting as possible and it is hoped that once the owls have finished their training we will be able to demonstrate their amazing flying skills to thousands of visitors every year.

Wildwood is home to a range of native owls such as tawny, short eared, eagle and barn owls. Training will continue at the park for the next few weeks so if you are lucky enough to be visiting when they are practicing please be sure to stop and enjoy this amazing sight.