OWL-SOME NEWS

Val de Vie Estate is fortunate to have a healthy population of spotted eagle owls (Bubo africanus) that frequent the area. Their presence is a testament to the Estate’s commitment to preserving and protecting their natural habitat. Two years ago, Simon Allen, Val de Vie Estate’s Environmental Officer, began an owl box installation project, giving our ‘wisest’ residents a safe place to nest. Scan the QR to find out more about this ongoing project. (link to URL)

Let’s uncover some of the secrets behind these nocturnal birds.

The spotted eagle owl is the most common eagle owl in Southern Africa and has a distinctive appearance with prominent ‘ear tufts’.

They have big appetites, and their diet ranges from insects, frogs and lizards to small mammals and birds, using their feet to catch prey.

The wings of an owl are finely serrated so that they can fly silently. This allows them to approach silently so the owl can hear its prey over its own sounds.

Growing up to 45cm, weighing around 700g and with a wingspan of about 1 metre, the spotted eagle owl is the smallest of all the eagle owls.

The eyes of owls are adapted to be like a pair of binoculars. They are fixed in place, allowing for detailed long-distance vision for hunting, but their close-range vision is poor. Owls can rotate their heads 270 degrees horizontally and 90 degrees vertically to compensate for this.

At night, male and female spotted eagle owls sing a duet, with the female’s voice slightly higher than the male’s. When they communicate, they sing two or three noted hoots, while when alarmed, they give a single hoot.

Spotted eagle owls brood and raise their young in abandoned nests of other raptors, on ledges and sometimes on the ground.

The spotted eagle owl camouflages himself with brown feathers of different shades that blend well with his typical surroundings.

In Afrikaans they are called gevlekte ooruil.

Please be cautious of owls when driving at night or before sunrise. Owls hunt on the road at night and have been hit by reckless drivers on the Estate. We appeal to our residents to be more vig