Boarding birds are a hoot
At just over six months old, Raja is the youngest resident at School House, one of the senior boarding houses at LRGS. He has made excellent progress since his arrival at the school, despite being kept outdoors in all weathers – in a purpose-built aviary.
Raja is a Bengal Eagle Owl who was hatched at the Turbary Woods Owl and Bird Sanctuary in New Longton, Preston. He is being hand-reared at the school by 15-year-old Ruaidhri Johnston, who has been a volunteer at the sanctuary for two years. Having been born in captivity, Raja cannot be released into the wild; however, Ruaidhri, with the help of fellow boarders and staff at the school, is doing a great job looking after him and staff at Turbary Woods continue to offer on-going support and advice.
The boys and staff have adapted the communal garden to accommodate a flying field, they have trained Raja to fly ‘to the glove’ and continue to help him develop social skills. Green Partnership Awards assist community groups in Lancashire to improve their local environment and in recognition of the educational potential of this project, they awarded the school £500 which enabled the school to design and build an aviary specifically for Raja.
Ruaidhri feeds and flies Raja during his lunch break. He said: “I’ve always been interested in birds. After I saw some owls at a show, I decided to get involved and to help out at the sanctuary at weekends and whenever I can. It’s very satisfying work, knowing you’ve trained a bird to feed, and owls are incredibly interesting birds – you learn something new every day”. While Ruaidhri enjoys his responsibilities, he says looking after Raja is hard work. It is demanding and time consuming and as owls can live for up to 30 years, it is certainly a long-term commitment.
Raja adds great variety to the boarders’ lives and joins several other feathered friends which are being looked after by the boys. An outdoor chicken coop is home to four turkeys, one duck and 12 chickens and provides the pupils with an opportunity to gain hands-on experience in animal care, as well as offering environmental benefits, in particular daily, free-range eggs, with which the boys can hone their cookery skills. Another recent arrival is Colin the Cockatiel, who was found on the school’s Dowthwaite Field. Despite requests to police and local press, Colin’s owners have not reclaimed him, so he has joined the School House avian collection!
Green Partnership Awards support projects in Lancashire that have a lasting environmental benefit, involve the community and benefit the community, local wildlife and landscape. For more details, contact Lancashire County Council Environmental Projects Team on 01772 530650.
