Montana

Did you know that Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) has a wildlife rehabilitation center? Located in Helena, Montana, the center is a treatment facility for wild animals. They receive injured and orphaned wildlife from across the state with the goal to release that animal back into the wild. The animal will receive treatments and medications that it may need, is given time and exercise to regain its strength, and can be released and given another shot at a life in the wild. However, the Wildlife Center does receive wildlife that cannot be released back into the wild for a number of different reasons, including injuries that are too severe to allow the animal to survive in the wild after treatment.

Some of the raptors (birds of prey) that cannot be released are kept at the center as “Ambassador Birds”. That means that they now have a very important job of teaching the public about their species and their importance to Montana’s Ecosystems. FWP has special state and federal permits that allow them to house the birds for this purpose. One busy ambassador Great Horned Owl at the Wildlife Center has two jobs. Not only does she teach the public about her species, but she also teaches owl chicks! She acts as a surrogate mom for orphaned Great Horned Owl chicks that are brought into the center.

When an injured or orphaned animal comes into the Wildlife Center, the staff limits the amount of human interaction that the animal is exposed to. This is especially important for young animals (like owlets) because they are at risk of imprinting on humans. Imprinting is the process of a very young animal learning to recognize and behave like its parents, so human-imprinting means that a young animal learns to recognize humans as its parent. If it sees a human feeding it and taking care of it, it will not understand what species it is. Birds that are human-imprinted have a very hard time surviving in the wild because they do not learn to behave or communicate like wild birds. This is where the Wildlife Center’s surrogate Great Horned Owl comes in. 

When a Great Horned Owl chick comes into the center, it is first assessed for any injuries. Once it receives any treatment it needs and is stabilized, the staff slowly starts to introduce it to its foster parent. The staff ensures that there aren’t any signs of aggression toward the vulnerable chick before allowing it free access to its new parent. As a surrogate mom, the adult teaches the owls proper behaviors.  They watch her closely to see how she eats, drinks, reacts to intruders (humans or other threats), and bathes. They are learning owl skills that will help them to survive in the wild!

How do I know if an owlet needs help? 

Photo 1: Rebilbilitated Owlet

 Sometimes in the spring it is challenging to tell if an owlet, or any chick on the ground, is injured or simply learning to fly! A chick should only be brought into a wildlife rehabilitation center if it is obviously injured or in distress. The owlet in photo #1 was a good example of a chick that needed rehabilitation. It had blood in and around its eyes and it couldn’t use its legs correctly. It was also so wobbly that it couldn’t stand up and it looked like a bobble head doll because of its tremors.  

Photo 2: Defensive Owlet

The owlet in photo 2 is telling you it should be left alone! This chick looks completely healthy and its defensive pose shows that it has a healthy fear of humans. A bird on the ground that looks like this is most likely a fledgling that is learning to fly. 

It can be difficult to tell if a young bird is injured or just so scared that it is frozen in place. The best thing to do is to be a detective. Take a step back, get far enough away that you aren’t a threat and observe what’s happening. Are the parents flying around above you? Are other birds harassing the chick? When left alone does the chick look bright and alert? Is it vocalizing? These can all be clues to help you figure out if the chick is hurt or not. If you think the bird is injured, call your local wildlife rehabilitation center to find out what to do next.