Family discover owls in their chimney after son heard 'hooting' noises

15 March 2024 , 15:31

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Owls that were discovered in the chimney of Lauren's home (Image: Lauren Mayes/SWNS)

A family who heard noises in their home discovered two owls in their chimney.

Lauren Mayes heard flapping and scratching noises coming from the fireplace and assumed it was just pigeons roosting. But when her son Toby said he had heard a hooting noise Lauren decided to investigate by getting in touch with the local chimney sweep. Chimney sweep Darrel Cucu came to the rescue - removing the wood burner and using his camera to take a look at what was going on.

About 13ft up, the camera revealed a pair of tawny owls that had become stuck while attempting to nest. Lauren, of Corpusty, Norfolk, said: "We couldn't believe it. Darrel managed to very cleverly get the first one down using his chimney rods. The other one was much more tricky and had far more energy. It kept trying to climb back up the chimney."

One of the owls that was discovered in the chimney (Lauren Mayes/SWNS)

"Eventually he managed to reach up and get it with his hands. They were both a bit sooty but considering they had been stuck since Saturday they looked in good form. They were really big and looked at us with their huge marble eyes. They were gorgeous."

Thankfully the family had not lit their wood burner in the last few days and they released the birds who flew off into the distance. The family will now be buying a bird guard for their chimney to avoid similar situations in the future.

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