Guiding a young bird back into nature showed that, if we want to prevent the world’s destruction, we must value lives that aren’t human
hat kind of bird is this?” The text from my wildlife rehabilitator friend had asked. I had to squint at the photo. Was this a dirty rag? No, a nestling. In very bad shape. A screech owl. Found dragged and dropped on someone’s lawn. I figured she was about two weeks from being old enough to fly.Cleaned and warmed by the rehabber, the tiny owl survived. Together we planned a “soft release”.
Yet, we assume all wild creatures are interchangeable – mainly because we don’t know any actual wild creatures. Alfie was not simply “an owl”. Our history together created a relationship. Trust became a bridge across which she and I, and my wife, Patricia, shuttled. Our calendar went blank. We had nothing better to do than sit in our backyard and watch owls. Meanwhile, the headlines
Most days, I’d get up before dawn and watch owl doings for two or three hours, and do the same around sunset. Alfie gave me an unmatched view of owl life. I could walk around, follow, sit in the open – she didn’t care. The wild male in her life was the one who had her attention. After some time living outside, Alfie acquired a romantic interest – and produced her first clutch of eggs
Even after her release, Alfie remained close to home, and continued to spend time with her human rescuers
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