Young owls (illustration). – Keith R. Crowley Caters N SIPA
- As the hatchlings fall from their nests, the Lot Bird Protection League warns against the temptation to pick them up.
- The LPO calls on walkers to leave the birds in the wild to avoid their premature death.
With spring comes its share of births and nature resonates with the chirping of the little ones owls and young owls. But it sometimes happens that these hatchlings fall from the nest and well-meaning walkers pick them up, thinking they are saving them from danger. In reality, it is often the reverse. To the point that the
Protection league (LPO) du Lot has decided to appeal to animal lovers.
“A few weeks after hatching, the young owls find themselves cramped in their cavity and leave it to settle on neighboring branches. They are said to be “nidifuges” that is to say that they flee their nest as soon as possible, unlike young tits which tend to stay in the nest as long as possible. Our young owls, only two to four weeks old, are not yet independent and quite clumsy. They do not know how to fly and it is common for them to fall to the ground ”, indicates the association.
Move them in case of danger
During this period, it is not uncommon for its members to receive phone calls from people who have fallen in turmoil in front of these little birds, looking like stuffed animals. “Some people take them to us or ask us to refer them to a health center, but there these little owls have no better chance of survival than in the wild. And if they survive, we do not know if they will be able to readjust, ”assures an employee of the Lot LPO.
So, after observing it at its drop point, it is advisable to leave it where it is. Unless it is obviously in the middle of the road, then it is reasonable to move it within a maximum radius of 40 meters, away from predators in a bush to do well. Moreover, “capturing or disturbing them is prohibited by law,” recalls the association. Its parents, alerted by its cries, will be able to locate it to feed it during the night.