Perhaps I misrepresented myself. I would never approach an owl. But calling a raptor rehabilitator is surely in order. Becky Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 21, 2013, at 7:55 AM, Tom Bain <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > Joe and all, > > Please do not feed owls. > > Feeding owls is a human thing, not an owl thing. This human thing is > probably harmless to Snowy Owl populations, today, but, ask yourself, what > if our collective empathy, sympathy, compassion and energy manifest in > widespread intensive efforts to "save" owls by feeding owls, as Joe has > suggested? Imagine the flurry of new pages, websites, and organizations > encouraging this practice? Lots of owls will be fed, this year and forward. > Lots of well-meaning people will feel good. Will owls benefit? > > Please grasp the moment, redirect the emotion you feel toward that young owl > perched in that vast corn field to owls' habitats everywhere. There, there > you can make a difference! > > The arctic will periodically regurgitate large surpluses of owls no matter > what we do. Arctic ecosystems are boom and bust systems characterized by > periodic, fairly cyclic, populations swings. The beautiful simplicity of > arctic systems should not be complicated by feeding predators filling a > niche near the top of the arctic food-chain. Painfully, let nature take its > course. > > Lastly, carefully read the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. You may reconsider > approaching owls to feed them, and you may reconsider that Blue Jay feather > dangling from your rear view mirror. > > Please support habitat conservation. > > Tom Bain > Bird Conservation Chair > Ohio Ornithological Society > > -----Original Message----- > From: Ohio birds [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Joe > Monahan > Sent: Friday, December 20, 2013 2:37 PM > To: [log in to unmask] > Subject: [Ohio-birds] Feeding Snowy Owls Update > > Out of curiosity I tallied up the number of positive / supportive comments > and emails I received about the "feeding snowies" issue. I'm happy to say > that while the number of negative comments numbered six, the positive > comments numbered 17! > > This is a combined total from both the Ohio and PA listservs. > > I hope together we have chipped away at least a little at the dominant, and > I think unsupported assertion that the careful feeding of snowy owls is > somehow detrimental to the species. There are caveats and guidelines to keep > in mind, as with all things. But overall, there is much more good than harm > that can come from this. > > So grab a pocketful of mice and head out to feed your local snowy owl this > weekend! I would be happy to post some pics of your outing / effort if you > care to share! > > Thanks everyone! > > Feeding Snowy Owls Post: http://feedingowls.blogspot.com > > Joe Monahan > Boone County, IA > > ______________________________________________________________________ > > Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. > Please consider joining our Society, at > www.ohiobirds.org/site/membership.php. > Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. > > > You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: > listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS > Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask] > > ______________________________________________________________________ > > Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. > Please consider joining our Society, at www.ohiobirds.org/site/membership.php. > Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. > > > You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: > listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS > Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask] ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Please consider joining our Society, at www.ohiobirds.org/site/membership.php. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]