Why a rare owl sparked a news blackout

By Huw WilliamsBBC Scotland reporter

12 March 2019

When a rare Tengmalm's Owl turned up in Orkney last November, it was decided to "suppress" news of its exact location.

The bird, which had only been seen in Britain a handful of times, had been spotted on the island of Copinsay.

The presence of such a rare visitor would normally attract hundreds of birdwatchers desperate to see it for themselves.

But the exact location remained a tightly guarded secret, with only three people aware that it had taken up temporary residence in an outside toilet at the island's lighthouse.

The secrecy was because of Copinsay's role as an important seal breeding ground.

However, rumours of the owl's visit had begun to circulate, and the Scottish Birds magazine has now revealed the lengths gone to by some people in an attempt to get around the news blackout.

They included inventing a falconer who had supposedly lost a Tengmalm's Owl.

Martin Gray, who wrote the article with Alan Leitch from the RSPB, told BBC Radio Orkney: "It's an extremely rare bird. It's only occurred in Britain a handful of times.

"The last record that was widely available to the general public was in 1980.

"So there's been almost two generations of twitchers who've not had the chance to see one."

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