Tucked away in their roosts, owls are rarely seen during the day. You may be lucky enough to spot Tawny Frogmouths masquerading as branches. Denizens of the night, a variety of owls and their kin hunt on silent wings, feeding and raising their chicks in our forests, farmlands and gardens largely unknown to their human cohabitants.

Until recently few knew that the Augusta Margaret River Region is a stronghold for the Masked Owl, a large forest relative of the Barn Owl, which can handle possums, phascogales and rabbits but primarily feeds on introduced black rats and house mice.

Just when we were discovering that Masked Owls glide out from roosts and nests in ancient marri and karri to hunt around our homes and farms, tissue testing revealed that these and other nocturnal birds are being killed by eating rats and mice that have ingested rat baits widely used by commercial operators and available on hardware and supermarket shelves.

Local observations, citizen science and academic research are filling in gaps in our knowledge about the enigmatic Masked Owls, their habitat, breeding and diet.

Liver analysis of dead owls and other wildlife that are handed in to vets and wildlife carers is revealing rodenticide chemicals at levels directly resulting in death or debilitation contributing to death by disease, starvation and vehicle strike.