In fact, no breeding activity had been confirmed for the species within the country\u2019s borders for over a century.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cInitially, we were very skeptical about the possibility of breeding,\u201d Sczansny and his peer Slawek Rubacha noted in a shared Facebook post for Poland\u2019s Stowarzyszenie Ochrony S\u00f3w Owl Conservation Association.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThis year’s spring was not favorable to this species \u2014 there were quite low temperatures, and it rained often.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n But Rubacha and Sczansny returned to the site, hoping for the best. That\u2019s when they spotted an owl in the same territory, with a \u201ccompletely different voice.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n They had the proof they needed: The male was not alone.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cOn June 26, we managed to register two birds for the first time: male and female,\u201d Rubacha and Sczansny noted. \u201cTheir behavior was a clear indication that we might be dealing with a nesting pair.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n On July 19, Rubacha and Sczansny returned to the area with a thermal-vision camera and were able to confirm the owls\u2019 breeding activity.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe were so happy \u2014 what’s more, we didn’t turn off the microphone, so the whole moment was recorded,\u201d they wrote.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cUnfortunately, the material is rather not suitable for publication,\u201d the pair added cheekily in their post.\u00a0<\/p>\n At dawn, Rubacha and Sczansny returned with a ladder and a camera to peer inside the nest. Alongside the female, they found three chicks, which they estimated to be two to three days old at most.\u00a0<\/p>\n Unfortunately, when they returned two weeks later to \u201cring the young\u201d for future identification, only two chicks remained.\u00a0<\/p>\n Still, their \u201cowl stakeout\u201d in the Polish woods proved to be fruitful. The two chicks \u2014 and additional audio recording \u2014 marked the first evidence of the Eurasian scops owl reproducing in Poland in over 100 years.\u00a0<\/p>\n On a broader scale, owl species around the world have been facing decline due to deforestation and habitat loss<\/a> \u2014 dangers that the World Wildlife Fund<\/a> has been actively combatting, as groups like The Nature Conservancy<\/a> and the International Owl Center<\/a> raise awareness for owl conservation.\u00a0<\/p>\n Although Eurasian scops owls are not listed as an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, they are scarcely seen in Poland.\u00a0<\/p>\n Reports from 2006 estimated the regional population size to be \u201cvery thin,\u201d although new data, like this latest report from the Stowarzyszenie Ochrony S\u00f3w Owl Conservation Association, is painting a more optimistic portrait of the owl\u2019s presence in Poland.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cDuring all the inspections, we collected a lot of information about food, feeding frequency, adult bird behavior, etc,\u201d the ornithologists wrote. \u201cWe are sure that these observations will help others with [the future] of this species.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"An](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/68d42d4349a8a68561d167b2_scops-owl-adult.jpg\")
An adult Eurasian scops owl. Image via Tomasz Sczansny \/ Stowarzyszenie Ochrony S\u00f3w Owl Conservation Association<\/p>\n![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/68d42d6b3494376f86963d54_scops-baby-owls.jpg\")
Image via Tomasz Sczansny \/ Stowarzyszenie Ochrony S\u00f3w Owl Conservation Association<\/p>\n![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/68d42d9049a8a68561d1c096_scops-baby-owls-fluffy.jpg\")
Image via Tomasz Sczansny \/ Stowarzyszenie Ochrony S\u00f3w Owl Conservation Association<\/p>\n