On Christmas Day, I found myself driving from Lutsen, Minn., to Duluth with a very unusual package next to my skis and duffle bag. On my way home from a short trip near Thunder Bay, Ontario, a Facebook post caught my eye. “…large grey owl on the side of the road. They stopped to investigate, and noticed that its wing appears to be broken. Given our location (Lutsen) and the date (Christmas Eve), what should we do?”
Minutes later, I passed a group of three people trudging up a snowy road ditch with a blanket and a cardboard box. As it turns out, that crew included Christine Salomon and her two teens, Ezra and Macy. When I met Christine and Macy the next morning in Lutsen to help transport the owl, they filled me in on the rest of the story.
Christine had called the hotline for Wildwoods wildlife rehab facility in Duluth and received instructions on how to rescue the owl. That explained the blanket for protection from the raptor’s sharp talons, and the box to carry the owl without further injuring them. “It was not that different than picking up one of my chickens,” explained Macy nonchalantly. “The owl was all puffy until I picked them up, and then they just deflated.”
Great Gray Owls, one of the tallest owls in the U.S., are mostly made of feathers. Living in the taiga of Canada, Scandinavia, Siberia, Mongolia, and Minnesota, they need lots of insultation. They also need lots of food, and this year more owls than usual have come south in search of tasty voles.
Macy and Ezra placed the owl, still inside the sturdy box with lots of ventilation, in an unheated sauna for the night. Being in quiet darkness is the least stressful environment for an injured bird. The owl’s need for transport to Duluth on Christmas Day fit with my own travel plans back to Cable, which is how I ended up in the empty parking lot of a liquor store in Lutsen making the handoff.
To reassure ourselves that the owl was still alive, Christine opened one of the flaps on the box. Staring up at us were two giant yellow eyes nestled into satellite dishes of gray-patterned feathers that funnel sound into the owl’s hidden ears. Just like the more common Great Horned and Barred Owls, Great Grays use their excellent hearing to locate mice and voles beneath the snow and plunge in talon-first to grab them.
This owl probably had swooped down toward a mammal snack in the road ditch, and didn’t see an oncoming car. Both natural weed seeds and food scraps thrown out of car windows can attract small mammals to the road ditch and put wildlife in danger.
I was mindful of my precious cargo on the long drive as I reduced my speed on corners, eased into stoplights, and kept the radio off. Jessica LaBumbard, executive director of Wildwoods, met me outside the door of their little facility in Duluth. With another owl already in their care, the possibility of spreading avian influenza was a risk she didn’t want to take. Plus, she would have needed the help of another staff member to handle the owl safely.
Instead, a third car pulled into their lot, and two of Wildwoods’ long-time volunteers whisked the owl away to The Raptor Center in St. Paul for advanced care. I asked if they were already heading in that direction. “Nope,” they said with big smiles. They were just happy to help.
Jessica and the small staff at Wildwoods have been busy lately. They helped rescue five owls in the matter of just a few days around Christmas. All were injured by cars, and not all of them survived.
One owl in particular, a Snowy Owl found in the grill of a car in the parking lot at the Bentleyville Tour of Lights in Duluth, made the national news. I asked Jessica what she thought those stories overlooked. “I cringe at all the photos of the owls with lights and people,” she told me. “Owls are terrified of us, and the best thing we can do is get them somewhere quiet and dark, away from human voices, as soon as possible. Our roads are not designed for wildlife, which makes these injuries unavoidable. But if people can slow down a bit, that helps,” she added.
Even after I’d delivered my unusual package, I found myself driving in silence. My thoughts were with all the rescued owls, wishing that their injuries could be healed. I’d just seen my first Great Gray Owl, and even that tiny glimpse had been unforgettable. With any luck, and with the hard work of all the rehabilitators and their rescue volunteers, and conservationists, the next Great Gray I’ll see will be healthy and in the wild.
If you find an injured raptor, never try to help them until you have spoken with a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. Only move them if they are in immediate danger and you aren’t putting yourself in danger. It is illegal to possess a raptor unless you are transporting them directly to a licensed rehabilitator.
Here are a few places you can call in Minnesota and Wisconsin:
- Wildwoods, Duluth, MN, 218-491-3604
- The Raptor Center, St. Paul, MN, 612-624-4745
- The Raptor Center has an excellent guide to handling on their website.
- Winged Freedom Raptor Hospital, Spooner, WI, 715 781-2595
- Raptor Education Group, Inc., Antigo, WI, 715-623-4015
- Hoo’s Woods Raptor Center, Milton, WI, 608-883-2795
- WI DNR Wildlife Hotline 608-267-0866
- Wisconsin DNR Wildlife Rehab Directory
All these facilities have websites where you can find out more, sign up to volunteer, and donate to support their important work.
Emily’s award-winning second book, Natural Connections: Dreaming of an Elfin Skimmer, is available to purchase at www.cablemuseum.org/books and at your local independent bookstore, too.
For more than 50 years, the Cable Natural History Museum has served to connect you to the Northwoods. The Museum is open with our brand-new exhibit: “Anaamaagon: Under the Snow.” Our Winter Calendar is open for registration! Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and cablemuseum.org to see what we are up to.
Last Update: Jan 15, 2025 11:13 am CST
