LIBERTY'S Owl, Raptor and Reptile Centre near Ringwood has welcomed its first hatchling.

The tawny owl chick took 36 hours to break its way out of its shell, and is now receiving round-the-clock care from the centre’s team of falconers.

Tawny owls are one of five breeds of owls that are native to the British Isles and are commonly found in woodland as well as more urban environments.

Jayson Bridges, the co-founder of Liberty’s, watched the chick take its first wobbly steps out of its eggshell.

He said: “Seeing a chick break it’s way out of its egg really is a very special experience. I do now have my hands full ensuring it is fed four times in a 17 hour period.

“This is one of our favourite times of the year at the centre, and we know from our visitors that they love coming in to see our baby owls too. Sadly due to the current social distancing guidelines in place we are not able to welcome any visitors to the centre, but we will be uploading lots of videos to our social media channels of these beautiful young birds as they discover their surroundings so that people don’t miss out."

The conservation charity is also celebrating another milestone — the 21st birthday of Liberty, the Alaskan bald eagle the centre takes its name from.

Liberty’s is a not-for-profit conservation organisation dedicated to the preservation of both native and international species of birds of prey. They rely on donations from the public to keep their conservation work going.

You can support their fundraising efforts here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/jdxqk-a-cause-i-care-about-needs-help?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link-tip&utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet

To see updates on the baby tawny owl, or to access Liberty’s home school materials, visit https://m.facebook.com/libertysowlraptorandreptilecentre/