SUDBURY - A young barred owl rescued from the side of the road in late May has been returned to the Windy Lake area to live out his days in the wild.
“It’s a beautiful location with lots of tall pines and cover,” Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre founder Gloria Morissette told Sudbury.com. “It’s a beautiful spot, and not a lot of traffic or people around.”
The young owl took a long road to get to this stage, with a community steward, volunteers from the Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre, Canadian Wings of Rescue and The Owl Foundation contributing to his success.
The owl’s rescue story began in late May, when a community steward found the baby owlet on the side of the road by Windy Lake, alone and dehydrated. It’s assumed that he was pushed out of his nest too early.
“The black flies were just horrendous, and his eyelids were totally swollen from black fly bites,” Morissette said. “He was in pretty dire straits when the gentleman picked him up.”
The owl’s rescuer reached out to the Val Caron-based Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre, who took the young owl in, fed and hydrated him.
Canadian Wings of Rescue volunteer pilot Greg Campbell flew the owl to The Owl Foundation in southern Ontario, where he was rehabilitated over the course of the summer.
“He was raised with other barred owls, which is amazing, so he didn’t have too many people interactions, which is important,” Morissette said, adding that a lack of imprint upon humans is integral to his success in the wild.
Now that the owl is old enough to hunt on his own, Canadian WIngs of Rescue volunteer pilot Maciej Dragan flew him back up to Sudbury last week. Volunteers from Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre returned the owl to the Windy Lake area to live out his days in the wild.
From the person who rescued the owl from the side of the road, those at Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre, Canadian Wings of Rescue and The Owl Foundation, Morissette said there are lots of people to thank for the owl’s successful rehabilitation into the wild.
“That’s what keeps us going, is these positive outcomes,” Morissette said. “Our mandate is to get them back in the wild with a second chance.”
Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre is a completely volunteer-run organization based in Val Caron who rely on public support for funding. Canadian Wings of Rescue is similarly 100-per-cent volunteer-run, and The Owl Foundation is a registered charity which relies on volunteers.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.
