this post was submitted on 01 Jan 2026
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Superbowl

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If you find an injured owl:

Note your exact location so the owl can be released back where it came from. Contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitation specialist to get correct advice and immediate assistance.

Minimize stress for the owl. If you can catch it, toss a towel or sweater over it and get it in a cardboard box or pet carrier. It should have room to be comfortable but not so much it can panic and injure itself. If you can’t catch it, keep people and animals away until help can come.

Do not give food or water! If you feed them the wrong thing or give them water improperly, you can accidentally kill them. It can also cause problems if they require anesthesia once help arrives, complicating procedures and costing valuable time.

If it is a baby owl, and it looks safe and uninjured, leave it be. Time on the ground is part of their growing up. They can fly to some extent and climb trees. If animals or people are nearby, put it up on a branch so it’s safe. If it’s injured, follow the above advice.

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From Owls in Towels

Luna the Spectacled Owl at Belize Raptor Center @belizeraptorcenter

"Luna is our residential matriarch raptor, going on 30 years wise, and was a successful apex predator for a quarter of a century before running into a barbed wire fence. She's non-releasable due to resulting wing injury.

"She is an exquisite educational ambassador at the center."

Many thank-yous to Elena Calderone for sharing these great pics of Luna at BRC. Elena included the following info:

"In those photos she was wrapped like a burrito so we could cope her beak as it had gotten a bit too long"

Indeed, owl beaks keep growing. Their talons too, and just like human hair and fingernails, they need the occasional trim. In the wild this excess growth tends to exfoliate naturally when they're out hunting and scavenging, picking meat from bones etc.

But in captivity? Owls (and other birds of prey) work a little less hard for their food. Less wear and tear means the keratin builds up, and growth is spurred along by nutrient-rich diets. So carers often use tools to trim and shape (aka "cope") their beaks to maintain proper function and health for the birds. The brand-agnostic rotary tool in the foreground is one such coping instrument.

Elena added "She was so mad 😄"

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[–] FuglyDuck@lemmy.world 4 points 1 week ago

The “I will kill you, hooman” face definitely transcends species