UPDATE 3: Little rescued screech owl on road to recovery

Some good news for a change

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The baby screech owl found Tuesday by the Perry Police Department and transported Wednesday to Des Moines by the Humane Society of Perry appears to be recovering nicely Sunday in the care of a volunteer with SOAR.

The baby screech owl found Tuesday by the Perry Police Department and transported Wednesday by the Humane Society of Perry to Des Moines appears to be recovering nicely in the care of a volunteer with Save Our Avian Resources (SOAR).

The female owlet’s fans have named her Holly in reference to the season. Holly’s handler, who goes by the Facebook avatar of Vinnie Vuelture, posted Sunday an update on Holly’s condition that shows her injured left eye is healing and she is taking her hand feedings with gusto.

Talons from four different raptor families. Image from Denver Fowler et al., “Predatory Functional Morphology in Raptors: Interdigital Variation in Talon Size Is Related to Prey Restraint and Immobilisation Technique.”

In addition, Holly “actually went after me with her feet last night,” Vinnie Vuelture said. “That’s not something you want to have happen but for a patient that was unable to stand, perch or balance herself a week ago, that gets another Yay!”

According to Wikipedia, “Similar to other owls, the screech owl females are larger than the males of their species. They have a compact size and shape. The screech owls are small and agile. They are about 7 to 10 inches tall and have a wingspan of about 18 to 24 inches. They have prominent, wide-set feather tufts with bright yellow-green eyes. They have different brownish hues with whitish, patterned underside. This coloration helps them get camouflage against the tree bark. They have well-developed raptorial claws and curved bill. They use them as a tool to tear their prey into pieces that are small enough for them to swallow. They tend to carry their prey to the nest and then eat it.”

ThePerryNews.com will update this story as information becomes available.

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