Woman trying to save ‘dazed’ owl gets attacked by bird in car

By Joshua Rhett Miller

May 9, 2018 | 1:16pm

This owl didn’t give a hoot that this lady was just trying to help.

A woman who spotted a disoriented great horned owl late Monday thought she was doing a good deed when she put the bird in her car and drove away for help – until it came to and attacked her behind the wheel and held her hostage.

“This owl, dazed when a motorist got it off Oracle Road last night, revived inside her car,” officials with the Arizona Game & Fish Department in Tucson said in a tweet. “It then latched onto her sleeve and steering wheel for some time.”

Mark Hart, a spokesman for the wildlife agency, told the Arizona Republic that the unidentified woman intended to “render aid” to the animal after it was apparently struck by a car. The woman’s mother contacted the agency after she became trapped inside her vehicle.

A department official then told the woman to pour water on the owl in an attempt to jar it loose, but instead the animal drank the water and kept its talons dug into the woman’s sleeve and her car’s steering wheel.

“She’s fortunate she wasn’t hurt,” Hart told the newspaper. “We have instances ranging from people trying to aide a coyote hit by a car and down on the street only to be bitten, to people separating young wildlife from their mothers in the mistaken notion that a mother has abandoned the small animal.”

The owl ultimately released its grip and hopped out of the car, Hart said. The animal appeared to be OK and was later spotted by the woman’s mother in the same area on Tuesday.

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Polygamy observed in trio of great horned owls

May 7, 2018 by Bob Yirka, Phys.org weblog

A trio of great horned owls has been found to be engaging in a polygamous relationship according to an ornithologist with Bird Studies Canada. The finding has been reported by Doug Main with National Geographic.

Great horned owls are notoriously territorial, which is why finding two females building nests next to each other was so unusual. Also unusual was the single male bringing food for both of the females as they sat on their eggs. Such behavior, Christian Artuso (with Bird Studies Canada) suggests, likely indicates that the male mated with both females—an example of polygamy. If true, the observation would be the first record of it.

The birds were discovered outside of an office window by Jim Thomas at the Desert Research Institute in Nevada. He alerted the Nevada Department of Wildlife's David Catalano, who is also an ornithologist. Upon viewing the birds, Catalano described the situation as "very, very odd." Not only are great horned owls very protective of their territory, they are also believed to be monogamous. This is the case for most raptors, Main notes, likely due to the huge demands on the male to feed both himself and the female while she is nesting. To follow what was going on, technicians at the Institute set up a webcam to allow others to see the unique situation, as well. Main reports that the owls became quite popular.

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Owl Missed The Man Who Saved Her So Much She Couldn’t Stop Hugging Him – via Rebecca Lang

By Zainab Akande

Jun. 06, 2016

   

GiGi, a great horned owl, was completely alone — until she met the one man she'd never forget.

GiGi first arrived at Mississippi's Wild at Heart Rescue toward the end of May after suffering significant head trauma, which the rescue suspects was the result of being hit by a car. She had a massive concussion, her body was riddled with parasites and she had a condition called aspergillosis, which is similar to pneumonia in humans, Missy Dubuisson, founder and director of Wild at Heart, told The Dodo.

GiGi was so ill that, during the course of her treatment, she lost an entire pound of weight — which was a lot, considering great horned owls typically weigh anywhere from 2 to 5 pounds.

"This bird was one of the most critical we have ever taken care of," Dubuisson said. "The fact that this bird has lived is beyond comprehension."

But if there was anyone at the rescue who could help GiGi get back in good health, it would be Douglas "Doug" Pojeky, president of the rescue and affectionately known as the "birds of prey whisperer."

"In all my years of working with birds of prey, I have never seen someone with such a bond with these magnificent birds," Dubuisson said.

Under Pojeky's care, GiGi went from knocking at "death's door to perching," Dubuisson said. She also went from being hand-fed to grabbing food on her own. GiGi had undoubtedly come to trust and care for Pojeky, and she made it known just how much in the most surprising way.

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Great Horned Owl Takes a Dip in Lake Michigan

by Laura Geggel, Staff Writer | December 05, 2014 07:00pm ET

A great horned owl went for an unexpected swim in Lake Michigan this week, after two peregrine falcons forced it into the water, according to Chicago birders who saw the territorial skirmish firsthand.

Steve Spitzer, a birder and photographer who lives near Chicago, filmed the owl's athletic water strokes shortly after the bird entered the lake, he told Chicago station WGN-TV.

Owls are known for their nearly silent flight, but it's not unheard of to see one go for a dip, said Julia Ponder, the executive director of The Raptor Center at the University of Minnesota.

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Saskatchewan village torn over what to do about great horned owl attacking dogs

Bre Mcadam, Ckom, The Canadian Press

Tue, 1 Apr 2014 16:15:00 CST

ABERDEEN, Sask. - People in a village northeast of Saskatoon are at odds over what to do about an owl that is believed to have attacked at least three small dogs.

A great horned owl has been living in a spruce tree in the community of Aberdeen.

Miranda Hingston says the bird swooped at her chihuahua, Rosco, last month even though she was standing right next to her pet.

Rosco survived, but Hingston says her friend's small dog was killed by the bird of prey and residents say a third canine was attacked as well.

She wants the owl gone, even it means destroying it.

But resident Janet Weser says people just need to keep a closer eye on their pets and the bird should be left alone.

"Let it hunt. It will move on as soon as the ice and snow melts off the fields. It will be after the mice," Weser said.

"I heard a shriek and then the owl grabbed a hold of him, dragged him about four feet and was going back and forth," Hingston recalled of the attack.

"I actually had to kick the owl to get him to let go."

She said her dog is doing well despite having a few talon marks on his chest and back.

"I know a lot of people around town are saying, 'Oh, it should just be left alone' ... but at the same time, what about our animals? There's a lot of small animals in town."

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Driver finds owl trapped in car grille

13 February 2013 

When a motorist was flagged down in a car park in Miami, the last thing she expected to be told was that she had a stowaway on board.

Sonji Coney Williams had been driving her car for a day before a Great Horned Owl was spotted trapped in the grille of her vehicle.

Beth McLeod reports.

Video:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-21439857