Not-so-injured Western Screech-Owl

The phone rang late two nights ago. It was David B., one of our avian caretakers, who had driven right over a lump in the road, realizing at the last minute that it was an injured owl. He stopped, gathered up the bird, and was anxious to get medical care for the stunned owl. As I set about making calls to find the nearest person, he called back again. This time he reported that he didn't think there was anything wrong with this owl. Apparently when he got the owl home and was attempting to put it into a box, the owl wriggled free and led David on a merry chase throughout his house. Still, I knew that the owl would need to be examined by a wildlife rehabilitator prior to release to ensure there were no underlying problems. David and owl arrived at my home about an hour later, with the little screecher secured in a well-taped cardboard box.

All was well until about 5:30 a.m., when I gathered up little owl, huddled in the corner of his box to give life nourishing fluids. Same scenario: owl wriggles free, flies all over my house, and finally gets chased into the bathroom (where the kestrel sleeps at night). Whew! Owl seems fine to me too, but I know the drill. It's off to a rehabilitator for a better evaluation.

So, yesterday, I took little owl to the office where Kristin and Peggy are both wildlife rehabilitators (I am only an emergency back-up for the real thing - sort of like a bird EMT). Kristin drew the short straw and took Little Owl out of the carrier for evaluation. A strong sense of deja vu came over me. Sure enough, Little Owl wriggled free and was free-flying in our office, at one point perching atop the coat tree right in front of the photo of our educational screecher. Ron K. snapped this photo, and then it was off again. Did you know that a screecher can hang upside down from the ceiling tiles? Fortunately, we have large nets in our office for the precise purpose of catching injured birds.

In the case of Little Owl, the odds are excellent for release, probably within a day or two. However, it does graphically illustrate the power of an observant human. Had David not come upon Little Owl at that precise moment, the next car may have created road kill instead of saving a life! Thank you David!

Avian Awareness Training

Did you ever wonder who or what might be staying in the room next door at your hotel? I'll bet you never imagined that it might be a few hawks, a couple of owls, and a crow! Well, that is exactly what was spending the night in southern New Mexico hotel earlier this week. You can see the tons of sheets and towels covering the area surrounding the ferruginous and Swainson's hawk that night.

Gail Garber and Kristin Madden traveled to Artesia with a vanload of birds to participate in an avian protection training session for utility workers. What a wonderful event it was! All 6 birds were perched around the room for the duration of the session. The crow happily accepted grapes and hard-boiled egg from one gentleman. Our Swainson's hawk captivated everyone at the end of the program when she caught mice tossed by another gentleman and chowed them down right in front of everyone.

The linemen that attended the session were wonderful. They were all interested in meeting the birds and learning more about compliance with the laws and the development of avian protection plans. A few myths were dispelled and everyone had a great sense of humor. In spite of the dry nature of some of the topics covered that day, the faces of the audience lit up when we talked about the birds and shared something about their individual personalities.

After a delicious lunch at a restaurant that was clearly a local favorite, Gail & Kristin headed home. Pulling into Albuquerque around 6:20 p.m., they congratulated each other on arriving home early enough to put birds back in their mews (raptor cage) before dark. They obviously spoke far too soon. What they encountered was one of the worst traffic jams they could remember. Finally, arriving at an exit, they ditched the freeway and south another way across the river. Every crossing was packed! Neither of them arrived home before 8 p.m. It was a very long day.

Burrowing Owl Release, Santa Fe, NM

Malcolm Kellermueller, Fledgling Biologist, is shown releasing Burrow Owls that were relocated from a construction site in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Four owls, one adult and three young, had to be safely excavated from three burrows and relocated to an area where they would not be disturbed. Malcolm is the son of Ron Kellermueller, HAI Raptor Biologist