Two baby owls nesting under Glastonbury Festival Pyramid Stage rescued after Guns N’ Roses set
Two owls have been rescued after nesting under the Pyramid Stage at this year’s Glastonbury Festival.
Secret World Wildlife Rescue, based in East Huntspill, said it received two calls that the little owls had been found under the famed stage.
The first owl chick was discovered under stage left during the Guns N’Roses set. Then a day later, a second chick was also spotted there.
They’ve been named Axl and Slash after the band’s lead vocalist Axl Rose and lead guitarist Saul Hudson, better known as Slash.
Axl and Slash were transferred to Secret World Wildlife Rescue from the local RSPCA centre.
A Secret World Wildlife Rescue spokesperson says: “The first little owl chick was found under the Stage Left steps of the Pyramid Stage during Guns N’ Roses’ headline set on Saturday night.”
“The finder named it ‘Axl’ (after the band’s vocalist Axl Rose) and initially took it to RSPCA West Hatch Wildlife near Taunton. It was transferred to SWWR shortly afterwards.
“The following day, the charity received a call about another bird found in the same place, thought to be Axl’s sibling. Axl and Slash (named after Guns N’ Roses’ guitarist) were soon reunited and clearly pleased to see each other.”
“Both Axl and Slash are now in an outside aviary at Secret World Wildlife Rescue and although a little camera shy are both doing well, no signs of them exhibiting their musical talent yet though!”
David Plant, Fundraising Manager at SWWR, adds: “When Guns N’ Roses were playing ‘Welcome to the Jungle,’ I’m sure they didn’t realise how close they actually were to wildlife!”
“This is possibly the most unusual disturbance case we’ve heard about this year, but it just goes to show the importance of checking you’re surrounding for wildlife before any activity.”
“The Pyramid Stage frame is left in place all year when Worthy Farm goes back to being a dairy farm. Clearly a pair of little owls thought it would be a great place to make a nest. They are a cavity-nesting species, favouring holes in old trees, but they have been recorded nesting in rabbit holes and take well to manmade nest boxes.”
“Whether you’re renovating your garden, or setting up for the world’s biggest musical festival, our advice is always the same: if you’ve got materials or structures that have been in place for a while, please check them carefully before moving anything, as you may end up disturbing a nest.”
“It looks like the parents sadly abandoned their nest once festival preparation began, so it’s difficult to say how long the chicks were left alone. We’re so grateful to the people who found and helped them; they must have been terrified after enduring almost 2 full days of loud music.”
“We’re hopeful we’ll be making plans to return them to the wild once they’re old enough.”
