The Hawk and Owl Trust at MHGC
A Case Study from Greenergolf.co.uk
Following a chance contact at a wildlife trust talk at Rutland Water, Market Harborough Golf Club made contact with the Hawk and Owl Trust, and its East Midlands regional officer, Simon Dudhill.
The Hawk and Owl Trust is a national charity, based in Norfolk, working to protect and conserve birds of prey and, in particular, wild owls. They are always on the lookout for willing landowners, such as golf clubs, to provide suitable sites for the installation of nesting boxes to benefit these birds. The trust will do the installation for free and even provide the boxes. What they want is the suitable sites. All that is required is an agreement that the trust can have occasional access to the nesting boxes for monitoring purposes. A ‘Landowner Box Agreement’ needs to be signed by somebody representing the club, or ‘landowner’.
Simon visited MHGC to survey possible sites for nesting boxes around what is a hilly, parkland course. Several possible sites were identified. In January 2020 Simon returned with a volunteer helper, and five nesting boxes were installed around the course: three barn owl boxes and two kestrel boxes. The Agreement was signed.
Since the installation, the boxes have all been occupied. Admitedly not all of these occupiers are owls, but at least one of them has been occupied by an owl! Club members have been interested in the venture, which has helped to raise the profile of the environment work at the club.
Since that time, several other golf clubs in Leicestershire and Rutland have liaised with Simon and had nesting boxes installed.
For further information, please contact the trust, or Simon Dudhill at simon.dudhill@hawkandowltrust.org.uk. Or visit the trust’s website at: www.hawkandowltrust.org.uk
