Beautiful bird. Such long wings and powerful looking feet. I wouldn't want to get too close to those talons.
You can see the fringe on the front edge of her wings. I forgot if you said that helps them fly silently.
this post was submitted on 22 Jan 2025
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For owls that are superb.
US Wild Animal Rescue Database: Animal Help Now
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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.
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I can't tell if that fringe in the snowy feather is just some of her feathers fluffing up or if Snowies just have bigger fringes. I've only ever seen it on smaller and less insulated owl. 😁
I've always read it breaks up the turbulence over the wings into much smaller bits to cut down on the air noise. I think about it like if you hold your hand out the car window and if you hold it more vertically you hear a whipping noise, but if you make it more horizontal it's more quiet.
Owls also have much longer wings than most birds would typically have. I always explain that as they can flap less and glide more to make them quieter while having the same lift, like running a larger PC fan at a lower rpm so it moves the same amount of air over the CPU while generating less noise.