It is with great sadness that I share the news of the loss of Great Horned Owl Sage, long-time member of Blue Mountain Wildlife’s Education Team. I will let intern Clare share her thoughts with you…
“My heart goes out to Blue Mountain Wildlife, and in particular Tricia, on their loss of Sage. They have had Sage since he arrived as a nestling in 1994. For the past two-and-a-half weeks, I had watched Sage take a mouse from Tricia and then give it back to her before he was rewarded with two more mice for dinner. Their bond was a wonder to observe.”
Below is a photo of Sage by photographer Dirk Hummer…
Owl Releases
We were fortunate to be able to release two owls this past week. Western Screech Owl 25-009 was found at the South Baker Intermediate School in Baker City, Oregon. He had a head injury likely the result of striking a window. A few snowflakes did not dampen the students excitement as they watched the owl’s release.
We traveled a short distance from the school to release Barn Owl 25-024 who had recovered from a dislocated shoulder. He headed straight to “his” grove of trees after intern Clare opened the door to the travel box.
While collision with a vehicle is the most common cause of injury to the birds admitted to BMW, this past week the two new admissions were both gunshot victims. Neither could be rehabilitated.
Sharp-shinned Hawk 25-036 had multiple injuries caused by an air rifle pellet.
Great Horned Owl 25-037 had a broken wing and a broken leg. From the fragmentation visible in the x-ray below, we know that the projectile was lead. Non-lead ammunition does not fragment when it strikes it’s target. The owl also had a blood lead level of 12.9 micrograms/deciliter, indicating some of the prey it had eaten had been shot with lead ammunition.
I will close by sharing a few more words and a photo from Clare…
“There is a kindness in what we do here. We accept death as a part of life and don’t allow suffering in its inevitability. The hard part is dealing with what our fellow humans do. Some shoot at birds. They shoot with lead pellets which can cause lead poisoning in predators who may consume the birds. That is true cruelness.”
