After nearly seven months of medical care and rehabilitation, a great horned owl will be released back into the wild at 2 p.m. on Friday, October 28, 2016 at 9245 Patterson Drive on Bent Mountain. (Near AmRhein’s Wine Cellar). The public is encouraged to come.
Sabrina Garvin, Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke, will be available to discuss the great horned owl’s treatment and rehabilitation prior to and at the release. “I am grateful to have the community and volunteer support to give this great horned owl a second chance,” said Garvin.
On April 2, 2016 the great horned owl was brought to the Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke after being found near Bent Mountain. On April 29, 2016, it was transferred to the Wildlife Center of Virginia where the owlet went to “mouse school” and joined other owlets in recovery. (Mouse school is the process of placing an owlet in a large cage with a surrogate owl who shows it how to capture its own food.) Once it does this successfully for multiple days, it is ready for release.
The great horned owl returned to the Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke on Oct. 26, 2016 to be released near where it was originally discovered.
The Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke is currently seeking community assistance to build flight cages for birds of this size. To learn more visit: www.swvawildlifecenter.org
Owlet videos:
? First attempt at flight: https://www.facebook.com/SWVAWILDLIFE/videos/1065526546840941/
? Being examined by veternatian: https://www.facebook.com/SWVAWILDLIFE/videos/1049665778427018/
Video of owlet with surrogate owl (Clapper):
? https://www.facebook.com/SWVAWILDLIFE/videos/1063137440413185/
? https://www.facebook.com/SWVAWILDLIFE/videos/1052169584843304/
Image of owlet with surrogate owl (Clapper):
? https://www.facebook.com/SWVAWILDLIFE/posts/1095979770462285?match=b3dsZXQ%3D
