Thanks to all who helped me with our Snowy Owl rescue out on the Duluth Harbor ice. I delivered the Snowy, now named “Sky” to Wildwoods (as in Sky Harbor Airport). The owl is very thin, but there was no evidence of any car strikes.
- Tom: Thanks for going home to get the wood and fish net. Duct tape is an amazing product. With it we were able to construct a 20 yard long rescue device.
- Judy: Thanks for your initial concern, and sticking it out with me. It is your video of the actual rescue included with this post.
- Ginny: Thanks for all your photos, and the blanket which I used to warm up with when I got out of the harbor. My feet and legs were frozen.
Some history about our efforts. I first spotted the owl shortly before sunrise sitting out on the ice. A sighting of this kind is not unusual … actually rather common. I took a few photos and left the owl alone. Returning after church I discovered the owl had only moved a few feet in hours. It did not take notice of us, even when we tried to scare and flush it. Having hand rescued a Snowy Owl back in October, with thanks to Frank Nicoletti who is the head bander at Hawk Ridge, I knew how to hand capture this owl. The ice was very thin. Thus I was not willing to walk out on said ice. With our Snowy Owl capture device, I waded in up to my knees … breaking the ice (some nice cuts on my shins), and pushed the ice out of the way. I then netted the snowy and pulled it back to where I could grab the owl. As soon as possible upon getting on shore we put a blanket over the snowy to try and limit its stress.
Video of Snowy Owl Rescue
A few more notes … In the morning, the owl appeared to be fine. When I returned after church I heard it had not moved at all. In addition, a person who was near by had taken dogs for a walk. When that person first got out of their car, the dogs ran over to the owl (the dogs did not attack or touch the owl). I knew that in the Arctic where Snowies nest both Arctic foxes and wolves would be perceived as dangerous by an owl. Thus, any owl that would not move or fly away when confronted by canines had to be in need of help.
Video Taken at Sunrise
I had never expected to hand capture a Snowy Owl back in October. I told everyone it was a once in a lifetime experience. Well … with the irruption of Snowies I have now worked at saving two owls. I hope Sky recovers. It is in good hands.
I will post updates about Sky on my blog.
Oh yes … yesterday I also saw a health Snowy Owl in the Duluth area!
Richard—i cant remember but what was determined to be the factor in in Skys injury or waht ever it may have been found to be?
Wendy, Sky was starving and unfortunately ultimately died. He migrated down to Duluth during the last irruption of Snowy Owls. During migration through the forest from the tundra Snowies have a difficult time. It’s not the habitat in which they are used to hunting. Hopefully next winter should be a Snowy irruption. They often come in four year cycles due to the prey / predator relationship. Thus, lemmings should be near the top of their population cycle next summer, which would mean lots of Snowy Owl breeding success (eggs per nest)
Congratulations, Rich!
Oh, please keep us informed about Sky.
Lucky owl