Barn Owl
Tyto capensis
Life span: up to 18 years in the wild and around 20 years in captivity
Size: Body: 33-35cm/ Wingspan: 85-90cm/ Weight: 265-310gms.
Breeding: 1-2 years old, spring – summer 1- 4 eggs,
normally only 1 chick is raised.
Fledging 7 – 9 weeks old
Habit: solitary or in pairs.
Diet: rats, mice, snakes, frogs, small birds, moths, crickets, bats and small mammals.
Voice: Screech, hiss or snore
Conservation: declining due to loss of suitable tree hollows for nesting sites. Rat and mice baiting can cause secondary poisoning to owls and kill them if they eat the infected rats or mice.
Found: in woodlands, grasslands, around most parts of the world including Australia.
Australian Kestrel
Falco cenchroides
Life span: up to 18 years in the wild and around 20 years in captivity Size: Body: 32-35cm/ Wingspan: 70-80cm/
Weight: males 136-252 females 155-310gms.
Breeding: 1 year old, winter - spring 1- 4 eggs,
incubation 27-29 days, fledging 27-32days old
Habit: solitary or in pairs, they are territorial.
They are seen hovering over fields and grasslands looking for food
Diet: rats, mice, frogs, small birds, crickets, small mammals and small lizards.
Voice: shrill, excited chatter
Conservation: despite habitat loss the kestrel is wide spread and common.
Found: in woodlands and grasslands throughout Australia
*All Australia Native Animals are protected by the Fauna Protection Act. For more information call National Parks and Wildlife S.A ph: 81244972 or www.wildlifepermit.sa.gov.au
Tawny Frog Mouth
Podargus strigoides
Life span: up to 18 years in the wild and around 20 years in captivity Size: Body: 35-60cm/ Wingspan: 45-60cm/ Weight: 100 - 500gms.
Breeding: 2 years old, mating all year round depending on food availability, usually 1-3 white eggs, incubation period 25-30 days and fledging at 25-30 day old
Habit: active mainly at dusk and dawn (this is called crepuscular).They usually live in pairs.
Diet: mainly eats insects, but will also eat mice, frogs, small birds, scorpions and occasionally fruit
Voice: repeated low pitch “oo-ooom (sounds like a flat tyre), occasionally hisses & screeches
Conservation: due to insecticides Tawny Frog Mouths may feed on poisoned insects, and then the lethal pesticide/chemical is stored in their body fat. During winter when they use their fat storage they are found convulsing, paralysed or dead.
Found: woodlands and suburbs, in most parts of Australia and Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands.
Chinese Silkie Chicken
Life span: up to 5-9 years
Size: Body: 50-70cm/ Wingspan: 10-20cm/ Weight: 1500 – 2000gms.
Breeding: 22weeks of age, will lay 90 – 120 eggs per year,
incubation period 18-21 days,
Silkie Hen will raise 6–8 chicks at one time, Silkie hens are good mothers
Habit: male defends its territory from other roosters, active by day, roosting in small groups at night. Silkies can’t fly so their night perching needs to be close to the ground so they can jump up on to it. Care should be taken that they don’t fall in the back yard pool or spa. Unfortunately their feathers become so water logged and heavy that they will drown.
Diet: seeds, fruits, insects and other invertebrates, also feed on commercial chicken pellets/chick starter or grower is better because it is small enough for them to swallow.
They like to pick on green grass, cabbage, and lettuce
Found: Found in backyards around the world. Silkies make an excellent backyard chicken; they have a docile temperament and make a great pet for children over the age of 6 years.
Silkie chickens believed to originate from Asia, but some believe it may have been China, Japan or India. It is also believed that Marco Polo introduced the Silkie Chicken to the western world between 1254 and 1324.
*All Australia Native Animals are protected by the Fauna Protection Act. For more information call National Parks and Wildlife S.A ph: 81244972 or www.wildlifepermit.sa.gov.au