Suffolk barn owls shown on live webcam

The barn owls have been caught on camera mating and preening each other

A pair of barn owls have taken centre stage in a live webcam launched by Suffolk Wildlife Trust.

The owls are occupying a nestbox at the trust's Redgrave and Lopham Fen reserve, in the north of the county.

On Friday the female laid her first egg so will remain in the box to lay more and keep them warm. The male will be hunting regularly to feed his family.

The trust said it hoped the feed would become captivating viewing while highlighting the plight of the birds.

Oka Last, Suffolk Wildlife Trust's barn owl adviser, said the female would typically lay an egg every other day, up to a total of 14.

Chicks should hatch after about 30 days of the egg being laid.

The maximum brood size in Suffolk, says Ms Last, is about eight - with an average of only two or three chicks surviving to eventually leave the nestbox.

It is the first time the trust has set up a <link> <caption>live webstream</caption> <url href="http://ispyabarnowl.tumblr.com/" platform="highweb"/> </link> for barn owls. Barn owl numbers are at a 50-year high in Suffolk.

Ms Last said: "This success is undoubtedly due to conservation measures such as the Environmental Stewardship Scheme, which encourages landowners to provide or increase suitable habitat to improve the owls' feeding opportunities."