THE FOUNDATION NEWS 4117 21st Street, R.R. 1, Vineland Station, Ontario L0R 2E0 905-562-5986 Charitable Registration Number 12431-5094-RR0001 www.theowlfoundation.ca May 2019

A memorial service was held in May for one of our founders, Kay McKeever, who died April 4. (If you didn't receive the obituary from us, it can be found by internet search on Kay's name.) At the memorial several speakers kindly shared their stories about her, and we saw photos from her life. Kay retired from managing the Foundation ten years ago. We carry on the work that Kay and Larry started. Within restrictions of our government permits, we continue to help unreleasable wild in our care to enrich their own lives, and contribute to their kind, as parents and foster parents of releasable wild owls. We are preparing to release the young hatched and raised here in 2018, consisting of four Great Grey Owls from Fanny and Fred, one from Petra and Scotty, and four Snowy Owls from SassyQ and Yeti. More Great Grey young have been hatched this year by Fanny and Fred, and Petra and Scotty. Great Grey Sonata is incubating again (her last year did not hatch). SassyQ is also incubating eggs. Some residents are fostering (page 2). Some resident owls have died since our last newsletter. In February we lost one of our oldest residents, the Barn Owl called Banjo, who died from an obstructed bowel. Banjo and his mate Soucy (died 2013) came to us in 1999. Banjo and Soucy hatched and raised many young that were released, and the last young from 2004, who are still with us as residents, as we were no longer allowed to release Barn Owls and had to block further breeding. An unreleasable Long- Eared Owl that we had for a year and that had just been approved by the government as a resident, was found dead. Necropsy indicated intestinal cancer. In March we lost the resident called Blink after a long illness. She had been with us since 2012 and had raised orphaned Barred Owls we received. In May a long-term resident Short-eared Owl called St. Kitt died, of causes to be determined. We have added two new residents, a and a Saw-whet Owl. Our two female Barn Owl siblings have shared an aviary for years, and had occasional conflicts. We renovated an adjacent outdoor aviary to make it suitable for a Barn Owl, so the two are now living in separate quarters. We renovated the north half of the roof of Fanny and Fred's home aviary, as part of our continuing program of repairing and strengthening roofs in old aviaries. The building of the large new 3-unit aviary for resident Barred Owls continued through fall, winter and spring as weather and resources permitted. The coverings of the aviary are nearing completion. Finally, thank you to you, our sponsors. Without your Snowy Owl from Saugeen Shores on-going interest and support we couldn't continue with arrived with a broken wing. our work. "Owl" of us here thank you for giving a 'hoot'. Now in release training. Page 2 Spring = Babies You cannot have a spring newsletter and not talk about cute fuzzy BABIES!!! The Owl Foundation is unique in that we have captive resident wild owls with all the On- tario species represented. We are able to draw upon their mothering instincts to help us raise impressionable young owlets. This year we would like to give a big hoot out to three fabulous Mommies and one super Dad; Big Red, a Great ; Pearl, an Eastern Screech Owl; Jenny, a Barred Owl; and Wawa, a fos- ter dad. Baby season always starts with Great Horned Owls. They are the first owl spe- cies to nest in Ontario. We had a bit of a delayed start this season and Big Red wasn’t initially keen on the parenting idea when the first orphan arrived. She had not yet gone to nest and laid her own eggs First ophan admission of the year - a Great Horned Owlet (which helps to get her in the mood). We were impressed when she took on one after another, after another...and then one more. Big Red had her wings full at one point with eight little fuzz balls. Usually we try and cap her at six but she didn’t hesitate and seemed unfazed with her large brood of nestlings. Luckily a few were close to branching out so she didn’t have eight owlets all clambering for her attention for very long. In less than a week we were able to take her three oldest and move them in with Wawa. Wawa didn't take long in showing his protec- tive instincts. Pearl our Screech Owl was more easily convinced as she was already in the mood. She was happy with her little addition, quickly taking him under her body. We check in on her owlet more frequently as he came in with a fractured wing. She keeps him so covered that it is hard to even see that he is there. His wing bones are mending but only time will tell if the fracture has affected how the bone will grow and develop. Next to be of assistance is Jenny, who has been with us since 1997, making her over 22 years of age (she was admitted as an adult owl). Over the years she has helped raise 16 Wawa with two branching owlets owlets. However the last time her mothering Page 3

love was required was back in 2012. Orphaned Barred owls are not commonly found. We have had a few fledglings admitted since 2012 but those individuals were not in need of a surro- gate. They were starting their journey to inde- pendence and needed only our release condi- tioning spaces to hone their skills. When we got the call from Shades of Hope Wildlife Refuge in Pefferlaw, Ontario followed by a picture of a day old infant owlet, we were a bit concerned. Jenny had not laid her own eggs since 2016. (It is possible, considering her age, that her reproductive system is no longer active. The lifespan in captivity for Barred Owls may only be up to 30 years. Jupiter, a past resident Barred Owl that arrived as an adult was with us for 25 years. Our little Barred Owlet, like Humpty Dumpty, had had a great fall...of about 40 feet. The per- Pearl in her nesting box with orphan son who found the owlet almost stepped on it while out in the bush. Due to the nest height and location deep in the bush, it made the attempt to put it back up in the tree nearly impossible. The owlet arrived hypothermic. The little guy had to stay inside under heat as we couldn’t be sure that Jenny would enter her nest and care for the owlet. We also wanted to carefully monitor his digestion, the fall could have caused some inter- nal damage. As soon as this little guy was able to start keeping himself warm without the addi- tional heat we placed him in Jenny’s nest box. As his contact calls were not quite loud enough, we used a cell phone to play recorded calls in the box. We hoped to entice Jenny to go investigate. Unfortunately she wasn’t convinced it was her re- sponsibility though she was certainly curious as to why baby calls were coming from her box. By the end of the day, (not to worry, we were feeding the owlet at regular intervals and keeping a close eye) with the cooling night temperatures he was brought back inside. A second attempt was made a few days later. This time there was a big difference in his ability to project his calls, no phone was needed. We placed him back in the nesting box. Just as we were prepared to go up the ladder and feed him inside the nest box, lo and behold, who comes flying out of the box? Jenny! We quickly left the area. We hoped she would return to the box and eureka...success. By end of day, Jenny was in full Mom mode, she was feeding him and keeping Newly hatched Barred Owl, note tooth him warm. She just couldn't resist his cuteness. Page 4 Barred Owl Admission Numbers Up The Owl Foundation has been in operation for over 40 years. During this time we have maintained records for the species that have been admitted, their injury details, and their outcomes. This information can be useful in many ways. It can tell us the most common reason for admission within an owl species. We can analyze the numbers and look for patterns. Is one species more at risk than another for specific injury types? Is one group more susceptible to window strikes than another? When comparing admission numbers by species, is there a pattern that is cyclical? Many answers to these questions are simply theories or inferences and more data would be needed but it does make for interesting conversations and can lead to potential future studies. In our May 2018 newsletter we talked about Snowy Owl admissions being unusually high and that Snowy Owl movements into Southern Ontario had become more frequent and less “cyclical”. At the time the article was written we were at 21 Snowy Owl admissions. At the close of 2018 we numbered 32. Adult Barred Owl This past fall, winter and spring we saw an increase in Barred Owl admissions. Barred Owls typically dwell in coniferous or mixed forest habitats in central Ontario. Many local residents and cottage goers can relate to the night time hollering of “who-cooks-for-you- who-cooks-for-you-all” as the Barred Owl attempts to scare away any interlopers from their territory. Barred Owls are typically sedentary, meaning they prefer to maintain a territory year round. In the past, when we had an influx of Barred Owls admitted they were usually juveniles, likely looking for their own space, took a wrong turn along the way and got into some trouble. Since August of last year, there has been a significant influx of both juvenile and adult coming into care. A total of 40! A few even coming from areas they were not commonly seen in before. Theories abound as to why. Of the 40 Barred Owls we've admitted since August 2018, 22 are still in care but 11 have been rehabilitated and released. The owls were released close to where found in appropriate habitat. Now it is up to them to try and compete for space and prey and hope nature can Juvenile Barred Owl accommodate them. Page 5 Petrie Island Owl Update In our May 2018 newsletter we shared the story of a Momma Great Horned Owl on nest that was struck by falling chunks of ice during a severe ice storm event on Petrie Island, near Ottawa. She suffered a severe concussion and brain damage. There were many following her story on social media of her journey through rehab and the fate of her two nestlings that were rescued. The young were fos- tered by Big Red, raised, trained and released last fall. However, their mother’s fate wasn’t a happy ending. After several at- tempts with different therapies we had to make the difficult de- cision in regards to our Great Horned Owl Momma of Petrie Island. Her brain damage was permanent and her quality of life very poor. She is now at peace. At least we can take comfort in the fact that her two offspring were able to be raised and re- leased.

Bald Eagle Release 2018 In 2018 The Owl Foundation admitted 197 birds including 21 juveniles in need of our owl foster care program. We released 153 birds including birds admitted in prior years that required long-term convalescence and care. We had over 2,300 hours of on-site volunteer time and over 1,200 hours of volunteer owl driving time.

Bald Eagle release in Port Perry following six months rehabilitation at The Owl Foundation Page 6 Volunteer Voice My Volunteer Experience...by Krista Levasseur When I was a young girl I often went to visit my grandmother. In her home she had little statues of owls and an owl plate collection that hung on her walls. After she passed I acquired some of her beloved owl treasures. Years later I was working for a business and there was a young owl in the yard who was being picked on by some crows. The Humane Society was called and we were given the number of The Owl Foundation. I had no idea at this time that something like that even existed. They came and got the owl and took it away until it was strong enough to be released back into the wild. A couple of years later I was wondering what I should get my own mother for Christmas, and then it occurred to me that I should find this Owl Foundation and donate money in memory of my grandmother as her Christmas gift. So I did. The following fall we went on our first tour. That was when I knew I had to be a part of this wonderful thing. I started as a volunteer driver and I still do lots of driving for them. I have also had the pleasure of being able to release a few owls. I have also done some poopy jobs...lol...and I now do my best guiding the fall tours. I will always try and be a part of The Owl Foundation as I love and appreciate everything they do. If there were more hours in the day I would absolutely volunteer more of my time.

Kestrel Releases While we specialize in owls, we do offer our services to other raptor species. Below is staff member, Stacy, releasing Kestrels. We admitted nine kestrels in 2018. Page 7 In Remembrance These past few months have been one of loss and We would like to take a moment to acknowledge a remembrance. We lost a dear friend, employee recent lost for our wildlife rehabilitation community. and volunteer early April of this year. Bob Owen Dr. Chris Crombie, a dedicated veterinarian for over worked part-time as our “handy-man” 40 years, passed away in March of this year. He extraordinaire, helping with small repairs and odd founded Windrush Veterinary Services in Burford, jobs here and there. Ontario and volunteered Some of you may have his time, expenses and met him as he helped services to injured and you park your vehicle orphaned wildlife cases during our sponsor that were brought to his events in September. clinic. He was a good His charming wit and friend of The Owl ready smile will be for- Foundation and will be ever missed. missed.

The Owl Foundation is deeply grateful for so many generous donations in 2018 given in memory of the treasured friends, relatives and listed below. Mary Burrett Carl Game "my brother Peter" Rae Yaki Micky Louie Rodgers Celia Wynn " Grandma" Jessie Goslan Frankie Burla Jinny Weekes H. Bernice Madill Kathy Irvine-Rodgers Bruce Hood Tammy Taylor Cathy Gallagher Betty Facey-Crowther Ian Stewart Art and Celia Wynn Betty Henderson Mary Stewart John Giancarlo Heather MacEwan Foran Larry McKeever Ron Sigston Caroline MacPherson Michael Starodub Greg Adamkowski Michael Voelkner Kirk Newkirk Robin Whittamore Carol and Larry Toombs Michael (Mike) Sammons Robin Arzt Gord Lak Berneice (Bunny) & Bob Skelly Zelda Yeoman Valery Vollenweider Allison Jones Rachelle Barr John Jefferson Brookes Bonnie Ann Baron Battiston Ron Gunst Valerie Matthews Gail Ann Voit Alex Zawierucha William Holding Jean Archbell Brianna Froese Jim O'Regan Graeme Whistance-Smith Evan Kitchen Donald McKinnon Peter Whistance-Smith Steve Oneschuk Jim Yurchuk Lynda Frangos Ruth Morton Pat Sewell Gary Beckon Bob Burrows W.R. McDonald Page 8

Great Horned Owl release in Aliston following six months rehabilitation at The Owl Foundation

Great Grey Owl, Fred, with one of his and Great Grey Owl, Sonata, peering down from her nest Fanny's two home hatched offspring, 2019 Volunteer Owl Driver When an injured/orphaned/rehabilitated-releasable owl needs to get to/from The Owl Foundation, we endeavour to have a series of drivers meet up with one another (often at a Tim Hortons) to get the owl to/from us as quickly and efficiently as possible, with no one person being asked to drive long distances. Even if you live far away, we can still use your help. We hope to establish a large network of drivers to relay birds from anywhere in Ontario to us. Name: ______Address: ______Willing to drive from > to: ______Willing to drive how many hours total?_____ Email address ______Home :______Work:______Cell: ______We understand that you might not be available each time we ask, but please indicate when you would normally expect to be available. Days Available (please circle all that apply) M T W T F S S Hours Available (please circle all that apply) morning afternoon evening We would like to reassure you, information is for in-house use only and will not be sold or distributed in any way