A Tale of Two Owls

Barred Owl
In Saturday's post, I described how I found an injured Barred Owl at Mead Gardens.  The owl had fallen from its nest before fully fledged, and when I found him, he was unable to move.  I brought him to the rescue center in the hopes that he would recover from his injuries.  The following day, I read a report that another birder had found his sibling in the same area of Mead Gardens.  I returned to the same location, and initially I did not see the him, but as I was looking I heard the call of one of the parents.  I quickly moved away from where I was and looked back to find that I had been standing very near the owlet.  So from a safe distance I photographed both the owlet and his parent.

A Watchful Barred Owl
I found out this morning that the injured owlet did not survive; the spinal trauma was too severe.  This saddens me, but I do take some comfort that there is another healthy sibling in the park.  I decided to document the experience more completely on the Birding is Fun! blog with photographs from the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey (a simply wonderful place).  It's scheduled to post Wednesday morning.

Also, the Audubon Center has an annual event, called the Baby Owl Shower, coming up on May 12, 2012 from 10am to 2pm.  They use this fundraiser to raise money to help them feed and care for the raptors that are brought to the center.  You can learn more about the Baby Owl Shower on their website.  If you live in the Central Florida area, it promises to be a great event to attend.

Comments

  1. Great pictures Scott, I too am saddened that the little Owl didn't make it. When I found the other sibling two days ago he was just learning to fly.. It looks like it is getting around pretty well !I'm hoping for the best ...

    Stuart

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  2. Great images and story, Scott! Thank you for sharing!

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