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Baby owl returned to Greensboro home |
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Thursday, 02 April 2009 |
 Shea Staskowski/SDN Abovve, Nancy Fachman holds the healthy owl that was returned to its home in a treet on the Greensboro Center’s lawn. The baby owl was been living at the Water Valley Rehabilitation since March 25. Below, crews from Big A’s Bucket Service volunteered their time to help fasten the nestling shelter to a tree adjacent to the original home of the three owls. By SHEA STASKOWSKI
Starkville Daily News
A crowd gathered outside of the Greensboro Center Wednesday afternoon to catch a glimpse of a baby barn owl being returned to its home in a tree damaged in last weekend’s storm
The owl had been removed from its home in a tree in front of the Greensboro Center after the storms on March 25 knocked the tree to the ground. When crews from Big A’s Bucket Service arrived on Monday to remove the fallen tree, workers were surprised to find three small barn owls hidden inside.
Two of the owls were injured and were taken to the Village Animal Hospital and the third, relatively healthy owl, was taken to the Mississippi Wildlife Rehabilitation located in Water Valley.
Unfortunately one of the owl’s injuries were more serious than veterinarians originally thought and had to be euthanized after doctors decided it would not be able to recover from its injuries.
The owls are still too young to be able to fend for themselves so workers at the Wildlife Rehabilitation were in a race against time to get them back to the area they were found.
When owls are separated from their parents, there is a seven- to 10-day window to return them to a tree close to the original home so that the parents will hear their cries of distress and come find them.
Oktibbeha County Audubon Society president Lawrence Croft built a large wooden box home to be fastened to the tree to shelter the owls.
“I just happen to be retired and they figured I had time on my hands,” Croft joked about his quick craftman’s skills.
Croft volunteered to build the owl tree house on Tuesday and was finished with the project just hours before he brought the house to the Greensboro Center to await the arrival of the one healthy owl.
Though he is no owl expert, Croft said he researched owl houses online to familiarize himself with what would be suitable for the owl and he also received guidelines from the rehabilitation group.
Nancy Fachman from the Water Valley Rehabilitation arrived with the healthy owl shortly after 4 p.m. yesterday afternoon.
As soon as it was removed from the vehicle, loud hissing could be heard from inside the cage. Fachman explained that the hissing is the owl’s way to communicate distress and that is what will ultimately bring the mother back to him to feed him again.
Audubon Society members and Greensboro Street residents have agreed to monitor the nest box after dark to be sure that the parent barn owls do find the nestlings.
The healthy owl will be joined by the second living owl in about three weeks after its broken leg has healed.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 03 April 2009 )
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