Here’s what happens when kind humans and open-armed owls encounter an orphaned owlet.
When a tree falls down, whatever the reason may be, a lot of creatures will be rendered homeless. For many of those animals, if unhurt they can fly away to find a new home. But in the case of the lonely little owlet starring in our story here, the journey to a happy ending was more like the suspenseful plot line of a children’s tale.
It all started when a tree fell in Maharastra, India. An unnamed (and very thoughtful) man went to investigate to make sure there were no injured birds, and lo and behold, he found a wee Asian barred owlet on the ground – her nest destroyed and her family gone.
He carefully picked her up, placed her in a box with a blanket, and brought her to the local animal rescue, Animal Rahat (“rahat” meaning relief).
Animal Rahat fieldworkers knew the owlet needed to be reunited with her family, so they installed a birdhouse in the neighboring tree hoping the others would come back, reports Michelle Kretzer for PETA.
After two days passed, the family had yet to return.
So they put Plan B into action.
In an effort to help wildlife suffering from habitat loss, the fieldworkers had been installing birdhouses in the area. They knew that a few towns away, another family of Asian barred owlets had moved in to one of the houses. And it just so happened that the parents had two babies roughly the same age as our orphaned hero. Would they maybe, by any chance, welcome her into their family?
“With their hearts in their throats, the team drove the owlet to the owl family’s nest. A staffer climbed a ladder, gently placed the baby in the nest, held his breath, and started recording on his phone,” explains Kretzer.
Within no time, the owlet clambered over to the stranger owlets and they all snuggled up together, as you can see in the video below. Animal Rahat staff members fought back tears, but this was just the first step.
Mom and dad owl were not in the nest, and the workers were not sure if they would be as welcoming. Knowing that the grown-ups would not return with all the humans clammering about, they left, hoping for the best.
So how does our story end? The new family’s nest was near the municipal electric company, and the workers there kept their eye on the situation.
“It didn’t take long for the good news to start pouring in,” writes Kretzer. “The parents had accepted the new little stranger just as quickly as their babies did. They were feeding her, helping her get strong and healthy, and teaching her to fly.”
With harm and habitat destruction running rampant across the planet, the story of one rescued baby bird may seem like little more than a drop in the bucket … but it can serve as inspiration for others to help an animal in need. May the good deeds of those few be contagious!
Restoring faith in humanity, one successful owlet adoption at a time.
Credit: Treehugger.com