Superbowl

3461 readers

512 users here now

For owls that are superb.

US Wild Animal Rescue Database: Animal Help Now

International Wildlife Rescues: RescueShelter.com

Australia Rescue Help: WIRES

Germany-Austria-Switzerland-Italy Wild Bird Rescue: wildvogelhilfe.org

If you find an injured owl:

Note your exact location so the owl can be released back where it came from. Contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitation specialist to get correct advice and immediate assistance.

Minimize stress for the owl. If you can catch it, toss a towel or sweater over it and get it in a cardboard box or pet carrier. It should have room to be comfortable but not so much it can panic and injure itself. If you can’t catch it, keep people and animals away until help can come.

Do not give food or water! If you feed them the wrong thing or give them water improperly, you can accidentally kill them. It can also cause problems if they require anesthesia once help arrives, complicating procedures and costing valuable time.

If it is a baby owl, and it looks safe and uninjured, leave it be. Time on the ground is part of their growing up. They can fly to some extent and climb trees. If animals or people are nearby, put it up on a branch so it’s safe. If it’s injured, follow the above advice.

For more detailed help, see the OwlPages Rescue page.

founded 2 years ago

MODERATORS

dragonfly

Smokeless7048

Was this a Barred Owl? (NSFW but no guts, just feathers) (imgur.com)

submitted 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) by shalafi to c/superbowl

4 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Seems obvious and they're clearly the most common owl around here. Was this predation of an already dead owl? Not sure what could or would take one out of the sky or a tree. (NW Florida) Whatever happened there was nothing left but feathers.

top 4 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old

[–] anon6789 6 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

It could be neck or chest contour feathers. The beginning of this video an ornithologist goes over a roadkill Barred Owl.

The most common causes of owl death are impact related (car/building) or poisoning, followed by starvation. Not much will hunt an owl, at least one as big as a Barred.

Most likely something found it dead or dying and took it off. Dog, cat, raccoon, etc. If it did die of poisoning, whatever ate it is poisoned now too. Newer rodent poisons aren't metabolized out like old ones, so as owls catch poisoned mice they eventually die of it. It's a huge problem.

If it is owl parts, I recommend leaving them, as it is illegal to kill raptors, and the burden of proof falls on you to prove you didn't kill it, not whoever is accusing you to prove you did it, the opposite of most crimes.

That's about all I got, I spend most of my time looking at them in one piece!

[–] shalafi 4 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Thanks! This was on a trail way back in the woods. No one hunting out there so I figured he died naturally. Took some feathers, LOL, but at least I got a pic of the murder scene.

[–] dragonfly 8 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Just an FYI, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) prohibits the collection and possession of nearly all wild native bird parts--including naturally shed feathers-- without a permit in the US. There are a few exceptions, such as game birds and non-native species.

[–] anon6789 4 points 2 weeks ago

The MBTA has a very interesting history I've touched on before, and I specifically mentioned the burden of proof, because I think that was an ingenuous addition, otherwise enforcement would be near impossible.

Protected birds are essentially the joint property of the US and Canadian governments, so it's basically treated as you smuggling stolen military gear.

The penalties sound unreasonable to us now, but that's because they have deterred killing animals so effectively we no longer really grasp why the regulations were put in place to begin with.