After rescue, great horned owl trio released to wild

A trio of great horned owls (Bubo virginianus) have been released to the wild in Colorado after being removed from a tree coming down to make room for a parking lot. A worker was about to cut down the tree when he noticed the owls. A wildlife enthusiast, he knew the owls were protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and called Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Wildlife officers removed the three nestlings and took them to a wildlife rehabilitation center the agency operates. Once they were large enough and knew how to hunt, CPW released them to the Gunnison State Wildlife Area.

“This was really the best possible outcome for the birds and everyone involved,” CPW District Wildlife Manager Clayton BonDurant said. “To get them down from that tree, over to the rehab center to get growing and then to have them all take off and successfully fly away, it’s really good to see how it all happened.”

Read more in Newsweek.