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Tommy makes a good point about the adaptibility of eagle owls. However, beware of 'historical accounts' of eagle owl in England. One such account, frequently cited as proof, is William Turner's 'Avium Praecipuarum quarum apud Plinium et Aristotelem mentio est, brevis et succincta historia', of 1555. Turner includes in this volume many informative accounts of the birds to be seen in 16th century England, not least a lengthy account of red kites. He also mentions long-eared and eagle owls. BUT his volume describes the birds of Britain AND Germany. Although the great majority of the text is about Britain, it is not clear from the context whether his eagle owl reference is to Britain or to Germany. Terry O'Connor -----Original Message----- From: Analysis of animal remains from archaeological sites [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Tommy Tyrberg Sent: 20 November 2003 18:54 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: [ZOOARCH] excarnations and burial mounds and eagle owl According to James Fisher (The Shell Bird Book, 1966 p. 324) there are: "Records (possibly native) VIII-XI c." and Andrew C. Kitchener says in "Species History in Scotland" (1998) that the Eagle Owl is mentioned in historical accounts. However I don't know what these claims are based on. However it would be strange if the Eagle Owl hadn't occurred in the British Isles since the Pleistocene. It is a very adaptable and eurytopic species and by no means an extreme wilderness bird. As a matter of fact it prefers a mixture of forest and cultivated land and if left in peace will nest and forage quite close to human habitations, and even on the outskirt of towns. As a matter of fact I think it would do quite well if introduced to Northern England or Scotland today. Tommy Tyrberg >I was surprised to see that Peter Andrews has identified Eagle Owl as the >predator at the site of Longstone Edge. The eagle owl has not been recorded in >the British Isles since the last glaciation, according to Harrison (History of >the Birds of Britain). Is it a Pleistocene site? >Dale Serjeantson