Edhat Staff
There were moments of quiet amazement as a barn owl gracefully took flight on Saturday, emerging from a cardboard travel box and rapidly soaring away from the onlookers gathered near Stow House. This marked the triumphant return of the owl to the wilderness of Goleta.
The owl had been undergoing treatment for capture myopathy, a potentially fatal condition that arises in animals subjected to extreme stress. By the time of the planned release, the bird’s blood work indicated a successful recovery.
The initial rescue took place on February 17 when a visitor to Goleta’s Stow House spotted the owl dangling from a palm tree nearly 50-feet high.
Wildlife photographer Susan Clothier was nearby and alerted the Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network (SBWCN) and the next-door Santa Barbara County Fire House. A team assembled, including the City of Goleta Public Works Department, to reach the owl and remove it from the tree.
SBWCN’s Dylan Helenberger spent ten minutes unwrapping fishing line from the owl’s talons before it was transported to the Ojai Raptor Center (ORC).
“On intake at ORC, staff Veterinarian Dr. Kathryn Rasp determined that aside from the obvious constriction wounds, the owl was also suffering from capture myopathy, which can occur when animals overexert themselves (struggling in a trap for example) so much that physiological imbalances develop and result in severe muscle damage. Prolonged muscle exertion changes the body’s metabolism from aerobic (uses oxygen) to anaerobic (uses stored energy in the muscles without oxygen). This change in metabolism leads to the production and buildup of lactic acid which can affect the kidneys and be fatal,” ORC stated in a Facebook post.
Nearly four weeks later, after a successful rehabilitation, the team assembled again to release the owl back to the environment in which it was found.
Helenberger opened the blue box and the barn owl took to the skies, spanning three feet with its wingspan, gracefully navigating through the trees and heading towards the nearby lake.
The barn owl rescued on 2/17 dangling from a palm tree on the Stow House took flight this past Sat! The exciting moment was captured by our Mayor Pro Tempore Luz Reyes-Martin, with the Mayor and a few other lucky witnesses were able to see this beautiful creature take off 🦉 pic.twitter.com/EeSdRpQnCy
— City of Goleta (@CityOfGoleta) March 12, 2024
The successful rehabilitation and return of this barn owl serve as a testament to the dedicated efforts of wildlife conservation organizations and the compassionate individuals who work tirelessly to protect and rehabilitate injured animals.
For those who encounter injured birds, reptiles, amphibians, or terrestrial mammals, reaching out to the Ojai Raptor Center at 805.649.6884 or the Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network at 805.681.1080 can provide the necessary assistance to ensure the swift and appropriate treatment of these animals.
Great group!
What’s not mentioned in the article is that there has been a tremendous increase in the amount of fishing line and other tackle lost or discarded at Lake Los Carneros. Fishing at LLC has picked up substantially since the California Department of Fish and Wildlife stocked the lake with trout recently.
Fishers should remove fishing tackle from and around the lake, and pick up their trash. The local wildlife will appreciate it!
Seeking info. here, not meaning to detract at all from these very worthy organizations, but wouldn’t this nocturnal creature have a better chance of survival, if released at night? I get the importance of the photo op, and providing viewing opportunities to generous donors, which could gain more donations and therefore more animals could be saved, but it still strikes me as odd. Or did I miss where it said this was an early evening release, and it just appears to be midday? Love creatures and people who help creatures!
Probably so, but zero photo op if you let it go at night. That being said, that bird is going to be good, despite the fool who left a bunch of braid fishing line out at Carneros. Sh-t happens.