A packed ballroom at the Oakland Center awaited the visit of two owls in silence. Students and staff lined the tables and walls of the room to meet Rito and Sam, the nocturnal educational ambassadors.
After the event was initially postponed due to winter weather on March 4, two owls visited University grounds to teach students about the importance of local wildlife. The event hosted by the Ecology Club in collaboration with the Stage Nature Center proved popular and impressive for students.
“They live with us because they can’t be returned to the wild due to the injuries that they sustained when they were living in the wild,” Christina Funk, lead naturalist at Stage Nature Center said. “The most common species that you’re going to see are these three: the great horned owl, the barred owl and the screech owl.”
The first guest to come out of a darkened crate was Rito, a minute screech owl. He was introduced to a serene room as attendees were warned that owls get stressed rapidly by loud noises and sudden movements. Thus, students thoughtfully remained silent and seated for Rito to enjoy his tour of the ballrooms.
“There’s a lot of things about nature and the natural world that are all around us that people don’t have awareness of, including owls,” Funk said. “Raising that awareness of all the different types of living things that are around us, I think, is important, because we’re — through time — disconnecting more and more with what’s out there.”
For the majority of the attendees it was their first time seeing an owl in real life.
“The barn owl used to be common here in Michigan, but unfortunately, it’s not really a Michigan species anymore,” Funk said. “As far as they know, there are no breeding pairs left in Michigan. I think the last time that they recorded breeding pairs of barn owls in Michigan was in the 1990s.”
Nicholas Skinner, OU Student Congress director of sustainability and Ecology Club president, underscored the importance of interacting with these species that the average student wouldn’t see in the wild.
“It was a great way to educate the public about owls, owl conservation and a good outreach event to have for students,” Skinner said. “Owls are such a peculiar creature, a lot of people are interested in them.”
As Rito prepared to return to his nocturnal crate, Sam, a barred owl almost three times as big, came out to meet the eager audience.
“The one that you heard talking, [Sam], I’ll tell you her story here in just a little bit, but she was rescued when she was a baby, so that’s why she’s talking,” Funk said to introduce Sam. “When we found her, she was on the ground and had been attacked by a dog.”
Sam underwent multiple surgeries on her wings to rehabilitate her body in conjunction with physical therapy. By 2010 she found her new home at the Stage Nature Center where she doesn’t need to worry about flying in order to eat.
Funk pointed to the Michigan Alliance for Environmental and Outdoor Education as a great place for naturalists to get involved and strengthen the community. After everyone got a chance to see Sam up-close, the two owls returned to their nature center, awaiting the summer rounds of visits.
“By raising awareness of them and people knowing that they’re here, they can also grow more of a passion to help protect them and do things to help keep them safe,” Funk said.
To visit Rito, Sam and their owl friends, check out the Stage Nature Center website.
