News:
Project of the Month

A challenging mission to protect the Little Owl!

As we have been doing since the winter of 2019/20, we are once again rolling up our sleeves this winter with our volunteers and a small company specialising in tree care. Armed with saws, axes and loppers, we are pollarding the willow trees that Herbert agreed with landowners last summer to prune.

With their gnarled trunks and numerous hollows and crevices, they are the favourite nesting and breeding sites of an estimated 360 Little Owl breeding pairs in the districts of Paderborn, Gütersloh and Soest.

This tree maintenance work, known as ‘pollarding’ or ‘cutting back’, prevents the willows (softwood trees) from breaking apart under the weight of their long, overgrown branches or in storms. It is always worthwhile to fight for the protection of this small nocturnal owl and many other bird, mammal and insect species: suitable Little Owl nesting boxes and suitable habitats in the open countryside are unfortunately rare and are becoming increasingly scarce elsewhere!

Caring for old willow trees and the time-consuming organisation of professional winter tree care for the benefit of, and use by, owls has become a challenging life's work for our little owl project coordinator, Herbert. Herbert now knows almost 420 farms in the three districts of East Westphalia, their owners and the pollarded willow trees that (still) stand there. Herbert also knows whether Little Owls still live there or have lived there in the past.

But here too, there are generational and ownership changes, and not every door opens immediately when Herbert knocks. So Herbert has to repeatedly present our Little Owl Conservation Project through closed doors -not exactly easy when the farm dog is growling on the other side!

For Herbert, knocking on doors with regularity since 2019/20 to effectively protect the Little Owl is only one side of the coin. The other side means putting himself through the rigours of obtaining signatures for a pollarded willow maintenance agreement with a ten-year tree stock guarantee.

But giving up is not in Herbert's nature, nor is it ours, because only the signed ten-year tree stock guarantee gives our Little Owl conservation project the security and sustainable prospects that justify every single euro donated.

And this effort is sorely needed, as the Little Owl continues to be listed as ‘threatened’ on the ‘Red Lists’ of several federal German states. In nine federal states, our searches for this small diurnal owl have been in vain!

Please help us to secure the financing for the willow trees that have been contracted for tree maintenance this winter. We still need approximately 14,600 euros to cover the costs. Your donation of 20, 30 or 50 euros, or any other amount you can spare at the beginning of the year, will significantly help us to continue our Little Owl conservation project successfully.