Country Diary: Flushing out barn owls with my explosive sneezes | Derek Niemann

Frome, Somerset: Not for the first time have I accidentally disturbed a slumbering owl – this one from its perch on a squat church towerMemories of our favourite open-fronted barn in Bedfordshire are forever tarnished by our final visit before moving. Prior to that, we always made a point of pausing in the doorway and checking no one was home before entering. On its concrete floor, there was a regular smattering of pellets – solid evidence that owls had been roosting in the rafters,