Country diary: a trapped hunter, rescued and returned to the wild

Allendale, Northumberland: Barn owls can starve in snowy winters; it may be that the injury saved her life

It was on Boxing Day that the two boys found her. A flash of cream among field rushes, she had a wing caught in a fence and was flapping wildly to break free. A female barn owl. They carried her to a garden shed, leaving water and a pheasant carcass from which she ate. Clearly hungry, she must have been trapped for some time. With no obvious sign of wound, they followed the video on the Barn Owl Trust website on how to check for injuries.