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US Wild Animal Rescue Database: Animal Help Now
International Wildlife Rescues: RescueShelter.com
Australia Rescue Help: WIRES
Germany-Austria-Switzerland-Italy Wild Bird Rescue: wildvogelhilfe.org
If you find an injured owl:
Note your exact location so the owl can be released back where it came from. Contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitation specialist to get correct advice and immediate assistance.
Minimize stress for the owl. If you can catch it, toss a towel or sweater over it and get it in a cardboard box or pet carrier. It should have room to be comfortable but not so much it can panic and injure itself. If you can’t catch it, keep people and animals away until help can come.
Do not give food or water! If you feed them the wrong thing or give them water improperly, you can accidentally kill them. It can also cause problems if they require anesthesia once help arrives, complicating procedures and costing valuable time.
If it is a baby owl, and it looks safe and uninjured, leave it be. Time on the ground is part of their growing up. They can fly to some extent and climb trees. If animals or people are nearby, put it up on a branch so it’s safe. If it’s injured, follow the above advice.
For more detailed help, see the OwlPages Rescue page.
Community Rules:
Posts must be about owls. Especially appreciated are photographs (not AI) and scientific content, but artwork, articles, news stories, personal experiences and more are welcome too.
Be kind. If a post or comment bothers you, or strikes you as offensive in any way, please report it and moderators will take appropriate action.
AI is discouraged. If you feel strongly that the community would benefit from a post that involves AI you may submit it, but it might be removed if the moderators feel that it is low-effort or irrelevant.
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From Izzy Edwards
Female Barn Owl on the left has tan breast plumage with many spots, male (on the right) has paler breast in comparison with little to no spotting.
Most owls we can't tell apart visually, but Barn Owls are one that we often can.
Do you favor the design of one or the other? I like the spots on Ms Owl, though Mr does have the whitest of white feathers.... 🤔
Maybe an uneducated observation, but doesn't the male show more nose? You can't see the nostrils on female at all. Is that an indicator of gender or just random?
Good observation! I think that is just random. Owls have a lot of voluntary muscle control over their feathers, especially on their face. They can move the facial feathers like a fine tuning control to hear different sounds better.
Here is a male with less visible nares (nostrils) and a female where you can mostly see them.