You probably won't see this bird, as it come out late at night. If you are out in the evening, however, you may hear the 'Too-wit, Too-woo' call.
The tawny owl is the most common owl in Britain. It eats small mammals and rodents, frogs, small birds, insects, and worms. It hunts for its food at night, so is rarely seen in day time. If you listen from your back door or from an open window late at night, you may hear their distinctive call. The two-part 'too-wit, too-woo' is actually the call and response of a pair of tawny owls: the female calls 'too-wit' and the male responds 'too-woo'. They have extremely sharp hearing and excellent night vision.
These owls are highly territorial, and males and females pair for life. The female typically lays 2 or 3 eggs. When the chicks are 2-3 months old, they are expected to leave the nest and find their own territory.
Well, that is the end of our trail. I hope that you have made a lot of pictures and learned a little about the wildlife that abounds along the river and in our town. If you have time, you may like to carry on into Shirehall nature reserve and explore it for yourself. You can walk along the towpath into the reserve itself, where we have placed a number of bird boxes to complement the natural nests. We even have an owl box for the tawny owls. There is an information board by the seat at the end of the wooded area.
Goodbye for now. I hope to see you again.