Long-eared owls provide ecological balance in village

Long-eared owls provide ecological balance in a village in the Central Anatolian province of Aksaray they inhabit as they eat rats in fields.

Four years ago, there were only four eagles, but today, their number stands at 200. The owls, which villagers try to feed, has become a picturesque scene for photography aficionados.

The long-eared owls, which usually live in forests and are under protection in some parts of the world because they are endangered, choose the regions they feel safe as their habitat. The number of owls that prefer Aksaray's Darıhüyük village is increasing by the day. Fahri Tunç, a nature photographer living in the village, stated that he saw four owls in the mosque's courtyard four years ago.

"I saw the owls on the tree in a mosque courtyard. Because I knew the owls would go elsewhere in search of food during the winter season, I fed them chicken livers. Their numbers increased by the day," he said.

"Currently, you can definitely see an owl on the trees in front of the houses in our village. I counted them six days ago and found that there are nearly 200 long-eared owls. When we consider their population of Turkey, this is the largest number that can be found in a village. In this sense, it is really important. Perhaps there is no place in Turkey with such a high number of long-eared owls. Seeing 200 owls on two-three trees at the same time is incredible," he said.

Stating that the most important feature of owls is that they eat rodents, Tunç said, "They mostly feed on field rats in the region. We are currently under the tree they perch. All the remains we see on the ground are the waste of rats. There were a lot of rats in our village and the cats were insufficient against them. After the owls arrived, the...