Rare owl found dead, hanging in a tree

Alison Morrow, KING 5 News8:04 p.m. PST January 11, 2016

Bird enthusiasts are furious about the death of a rare, protected owl over the weekend. Now the Colville Tribe is investigating.

"It was a superb bird, a very beautiful bird," Jon Houghton remembered.

Houghton's seen a lot of birds in 70 years. Last week, he learned a unique Northern Hawk Owl was spotted in Okanagan County. Bird watchers sounded the call and a migration of people flocked to see it.

For Houghton, it was worth the four-hour drive, but he'd heard from others that the landowner was unhappy about the attention. Though bird watchers stayed on a public road, the bird was on private property. An online comment describes a sign warning "no photographs."

Then Saturday, a couple who saw the bird alive heard a gunshot after driving away, then returned to see the owl hanging by one foot. Another bird watcher showed up Sunday, unaware the owl was dead, and took a picture.

"This bird appears to have been shot. His talons were still hanging onto the branch," Houghton described. "The bird was inverted with its wings hanging down - its head hanging down."

Northern Hawk Owls are protected under the federal Migratory Bird Act. They're also hardly ever seen outside Canada and Alaska.

"Even the most common owls are rare and difficult to find. This is one of the rarest owls," explained author Paul Bannick.

Bannick chose the Northern Hawk Owl for one of his book covers. He's spent years living among them, taking their pictures and studying their behavior.

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A rare Northern Hawk Owl draws attention on the Palouse

By Rachel Dubrovin Published: Jan 20, 2014 at 8:37 AM PST

Bird watchers mourn rare owl after it was hit by a car.

MOSCOW, ID - Birdwatchers on the Palouse are mourning the loss of a rare bird that's been living in eastern Moscow since early December.

This is footage of the rare Northern Hawk Owl that Reporter Rachel Dubrovin shot last week near the Eastside Marketplace. Palouse Audubon Society Member, Terry Gray said he got a call Thursday afternoon from fellow bird watchers who found the owl after it was hit by a car on Mountain View Road. Gray said it's a tragic loss, but he wasn't shocked to hear it was hit.

"It's something that happens a lot I think," said Gray. "These very rare birds that come into an area that are not used to being in a place where there's a lot more danger, and they don't usually make it back to where they're initially supposed to be."

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Exhausted owl takes a break on a canoe deck

This little guy had one hoot of a day after being rescued from a freezing cold lake in Finland before deciding to take a break on the edge of a canoe deck.

The exhausted and soaking northern hawk owl was found stranded in Lake Tuusula, north of Helsinki by local adventurer Pentti Taskinen.

The owl was taken safely back ashore and dried off before it was able to fly to the forest.

Unlike many other owls, the northern hawk owls are active during the day, but also feed on small rodents, mammals as well as other birds.

They are often found in north America, Serbia and northern Scandinavia.

http://metro.co.uk/2013/11/09/cute-alert-exhausted-owl-takes-a-break-on-a-canoe-deck-4180336/