A wildlife photographer who captured extraordinary close-up footage of an owl adopting orphan chicks described the video as 'absolutely magical'. Robert Fuller, 50, appeared on BBC One's The One Show and unveiled footage he had shot filmed around his Yorkshire home.
He said: "From birds of prey to garden birds, many of this year's offspring are growing fast and getting ready to leave the nest. Blackbirds and bullfinches have been busy fattening up their chicks with seeds, worms and insects.
"Three-week-old kestrels are already starting to stretch their wings. I've got over 20 custom-built nest boxes all rigged with cameras. They allow me to enjoy all the new life emerging.
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"But it also gives me the opportunity to be on hand if things go wrong. The tawny owls have laid three eggs and they still haven't hatched.
"And at this stage I know they're not going to. Tawny owls incubate for around 30 days and these eggs are now a week overdue. Elsewhere I've got the opposite problem. Two chicks have fallen from their nest and been separated from their parents.
"I brought them in for the night, to feed and build their strength. But with their parents nowhere to be seen, I've got an idea."
When the tawny owls were out of the nest, Fuller swapped the failed eggs with the rescue chicks. Watching the chicks on his television screen, a proud Fuller said: "I've just got to watch and wait now and hope Luna [the female bird] accepts them."
It was a tense moment as Luna flew into her nest. Would she accept the rescue chicks as her own?
Fuller said with anticipation: "This is it, she's coming in." As Luna started mothering the chicks, Fuller appeared to be overwhelmed.
He said with a smile on his face: "Look at that. She is straight onto brooding those chicks. She is ruffling her feathers, she is so proud of them. That is absolutely magical.
"That's amazing to see how she's taken them on as her own." Viewers were touched by Fuller's feathered friends' rescue.
PepperPot @philm2244 said: "This bird photography is incredible. Custom built nesting boxes are a brilliant idea that has really paid off."
Caroline Whiting @caroline_cw said: I must be over-tired… just watched @BBCTheOneShow & the owl who took the orphan owl babies on… crying buckets. It was heart-warming to see her take to them so quickly, heart-breaking to think she waited so patiently for her own eggs to hatch."
