Hi Helen, thanks for the welcome.
What I meant by professionals, these are certain UK Conservationists who would like to see more Eagle Owls living & breeding in the wild.
Thanks John for letting me know about the Eagle Owl programme soon to be on TV, this I will watch with interest.
Hopefully this programme will highlight the reality & impact it could have on our small island, if not I think more people will be illegally releasing their unwanted birds, if this occurs it will have a devasting effect on localised UK wildlife.
I have written the below regarding my concerns I have with Eagle Owls within the UK.
European/Eurasian Eagle. Approximate Body Weights: Males from 3.5lbs to 5.5lbs - Females from 5lb to approximately 11 to 14lbs
Predators: Man, Golden Eagle, Bald Eagle.
Flight: Very low to the ground, this will make it very vulnerable if flying across UK road networks
The diet can vary from ground prey, this being small rodents up to the size of a
Fox or small deer. Ground birds will also form part its diet for example: Pheasants, Grouse, Partridge etc, this will be to the dislike of many gamekeepers who would persecute it to protect their stock. Regarding smaller & less powerful Owls such as Tawny Owls, Little Owls & Barn Owls, yes these will on occasions form part of the Eagle Owls diet with most being taken during the night whilst they are in flight or even perched. The stealth like hunting techniques used by the Eagle Owl will make UK Owls very vulnerable in areas they inhabit. On occasions I have witnessed what a few escapees can do to a localised Owl population especially from one that was loose in Glastonbury for 18months, it took a few years after its re-capture for the local Owl population to regenerate its self. The conservation impact can be huge! Eagles do not sit back & say ahhh look at that Barn Owl isn't it beautiful, only humans do that! An Eagle Owl will simply take it out. To take out any aerial conflict or vulnerable species at night would be in the Eagle Owls favour.
The Eagle Owl can hunt both day & night. Because this is non native species to the UK it will at times when visible be constantly mobbed throughout the day, mobbing will be by crows, jackdaws, rooks, magpies, seagulls, buzzards & other diurnal birds of prey. This constant conflict/mobbing will be delivered to drive it out of the area, eventually the Eagle Owl will need to find a safer place to take refuge, somewhere where it can take cover & relax. When night time comes this is where the Eagle Owl will be in its element, this will be a safe time to venture out into its new environment & to find prey.
The question is what can mob an Eagle Owl at night or conflict with its ability to hunt safely without being disturbed. This is where the UK Owl population will sadly fall into its diet. Tawny Owls will naturally mob an Eagle Owl simply to defend its territory, this I have witness with escapees I have been called out to, in addition to this I do witness this most evenings with the Eagle Owls I work with as they have the opportunity to fly at night. We have had Tawny Owls attacking our Eagle Owls whilst they are in their aviaries.
Imagine a Barn Owl gently quartering the open fields hunting, to an Eagle Owl this will be an easy meal as it will launch from its perch with the aim of quickly getting to ground level in a stealth like manner, it will then raise up underneath the Barn Owl & grab it in mid flight like a shark attack then to return back to its perch with one dead Barn Owl or lunch!
Operating a rescue/conservation Centre I do find the Eagle Owl a fascinating bird to work with especially with the problems they face in captivity or the Pet trade. I have set a personal task to learn more about its ability, this helps me when I get called out to an escapee. One of our Eagle Owls is worked in natural conditions, this allows me to study its behaviour & the behaviour of surrounding wildlife, which conflict with it. The catching of food in mid flight I demonstrate daily. Flying him during the night or the early morning hours of the morning is an experience & I do witness on occasions 1 or 2 Tawny Owls mobbing or attacking him. He does look out for them & on occasions have chased after them in a bid to take them out, with me being present I have managed to control the situation with no casualties as yet. I must state with this type of training my intentions are not to hunt with the Eagle Owl(s) its to understand them.
To observe this behaviour at close quarters most days does give me the ability to understand more about the Eagle Owl & its natural behaviour. Sometimes I fly 2 Eagle Owls during the day & during the night, that is something else! Together they more or less work together in the territory they know, the behaviour they both show is very similar to the behaviour seen in Tawny Owls. Day time both Eagle Owls can be seen being mobbed by the corvid family (crows etc) & also by local Buzzards, Kestrels & the occasional Peregrine Falcon & Hobby. This shows me how they deal with the situation they are faced with.
For a small island the question must be asked if our environment can sustain such a powerful night time predator? Also how can one work to conserve wild Barn Owls, Little Owls & Tawny Owls with wild Eagle Owls present?
Please excuse any spelling or grammar errors in the above, now I think I need coffee & a bacon sandwich
Vincent Jones
Conservation Officer
Barn Owl Centre
http://www.barnowl.co.uk
They seem to think that because they once lived wild here it's OK to re-indroduce them now. 
However, there are no longer the same food sources available to these giant birds nowadays. The one that was spotted in Balerno recently took to preying on peoples cats and small dogs. Why don't people think before they go ahead with stupid ideas like this.
