Bird Treatment and Learning Center – Owls in Towels https://owlsintowels.org/ Thu, 16 Apr 2026 11:01:31 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1.2 https://owlsintowels.org/content/media/tBNh7to.png Bird Treatment and Learning Center – Owls in Towels https://owlsintowels.org/ 32 32 Feisty Northern Hawk Owl https://owlsintowels.org/feisty-northern-hawk-owl/ https://owlsintowels.org/feisty-northern-hawk-owl/#respond Tue, 03 Feb 2026 23:00:00 +0000 https://owlsintowels.org/?p=3249
A Northern Hawk Owl wears a watermelon pink towel and a stern expression. His head is wide and oblate, sporting pale beeswax yellow eyes that match his beak, and feathers in shades of lunar rock and obsidian. His face is punctuated with black markings in the shape of harps - curved around the eyes, rising to peaks at the temples, and flanked by thick pillars where the sideburns should be. The rehabber holds him in a purple glove.

Original post – 30 Oct 2024
by Bird TLC

Website | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube
located in Anchorage, Alaska, US πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Initial Admission

Meet our most recent patient – a Northern Hawk Owl. Rehab staff describes him as “discombobulated” but still feisty and wanting nothing to do with these creatures who are trying to help him. That’s OK – we’re used to it.

Have you ever wondered why this bird is called a “Hawk Owl?” While it looks like an owl, it behaves like a hawk – perching on solitary trees and hunting by daylight.

Update 01 Nov 2024

πŸ”Š Our Northern Hawk Owl has been very talkative so we wanted to share his vocalizations with you-it’s not often you get to hear this owl in the wild. Let us know if this is the sound you expected to hear from a Hawk Owl!

Update 08 Nov 2024

Good news on our Northern Hawk Owl patient! His recovery is progressing well – he’s eating on his own and flying around the indoor flight pen. We’re hopeful that his return to the wild will be coming up soon!

Update 12 Nov 2024
(if you’re going to watch any video, make sure it’s this one)

Video transcription

The Hawk Owl is held to the chest of a rehabber, cloaked in a pink towel. He nibbles vigorously at whatever his beak can reach – he cranes and shakes his head to gnaw at the edge of the breast pocket, followed by a long-drawn and concerted battle with the towel. Between bouts he considers the gloved fingers, and briefly glances at the camera to show he means business.

Spunky and feisty-just what we like to see! Wish we could tell our Northern Hawk Owl his release back to wild is looking more certain.

Update 14 Nov 2024

“That’s a good sign that he hates us.”
Dr. Karen, assisted by Nikki, examined our Northern Hawk Owl patient to determine if he is ready to return to the wild. The verdict? “He looks great.” Stay tuned!

Final Update 16 Nov 2024

And just like that, our Northern Hawk Owl returns to the wild. Let’s all wish him a good life.

Link to donate to Bird TLC for those willing and able.

xo owlsintowels

πŸ’›πŸ¦‰

SpeciesCommon NameMore info
Surnia ululaNorthern Hawk-OwlWiki link
]]> https://owlsintowels.org/feisty-northern-hawk-owl/feed/ 0 Cute Murder Machine https://owlsintowels.org/cute-murder-machine/ https://owlsintowels.org/cute-murder-machine/#respond Mon, 15 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://owlsintowels.org/?p=2086 A small Northern Saw-whet Owl is wrapped in a white cloth, with only her face visible. The arrangement of fabric could be mistaken for a white rose, albeit one with large round eyes and yellow irises. Her head feathers are a mix of light tan and white with dark streaks. The rictal bristles around her beak are very thin, and look kind of like those wire head massagers. The person holding the owl is wearing a dark jacket in the background but the focus is entirely on the owl, which looks alert and curious.

Original post – 02 Jan 2025

by Bird Treatment and Learning Center

Website | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube
located in Anchorage, Alaska, US πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Not much info was included with this picture of a Northern Saw-whet Owl but we know she was included in Bird TLC’s top 10 Moments of 2024.

Link to donate to Bird TLC for those willing and able.

xo owlsintowels

πŸ’›πŸ¦‰

SpeciesCommon NameMore info
Aegolius acadicusNorthern Saw-whet OwlWiki link
]]> https://owlsintowels.org/cute-murder-machine/feed/ 0 Resting Owl Face https://owlsintowels.org/resting-owl-face/ https://owlsintowels.org/resting-owl-face/#respond Wed, 23 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://owlsintowels.org/?p=2022 This Great-Horned Owl is half-wrapped in a slate blue towel, clutched to the chest like an angry rugby ball. The rehabilitator wears a long-sleeve top in bright yellow (matching the owl's eyes), and gloves in hospital-grade purple (matching nothing). The wishbone-shape of a stethoscope is draped around the person's neck, behind the owl's head. The owl appears cartoonishly disgruntled with a furrowed brow overhanging his or her eyes. The flattened plumicorns are shaped downwards, seemingly as a continuation of the brows forming a stretched letter "M" which only serves to exaggerate this owl's look of deep-seated menace and malcontent.

Original post 18 Apr 2025 by Bird TLC

Website | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube
located in Anchorage, Alaska, US πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

This owl sustained multiple injuries when he was hit by a car, so he will be with us for a while. This is a good reminder for all of us to slow down and pay attention when driving.

Link to donate to Bird TLC for those willing and able.

xo owlsintowels

πŸ’›πŸ¦‰

SpeciesCommon NameMore info
Bubo virginianusGreat Horned OwlWiki link
]]> https://owlsintowels.org/resting-owl-face/feed/ 0 Rehabilitating a Northern Hawk Owl Pt. 2 https://owlsintowels.org/rehabilitating-a-northern-hawk-owl-pt-2/ Sat, 10 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://owlsintowels.org/?p=1832 Similar to the previous post, this Northern Hawk-Owl appears to be either in a state of recoil, or looking down its beak at the viewer. It is wrapped in a towel, and held by a single hand wearing a blue medical glove. The other hand is unseen, probably taking the photo. The owl's pupils are more dilated than in the previous photo, perhaps due to a slightly darker environment owing to the towel forming a hood over its head. The wrap appears a little tighter, more like a burrito, and one corner of the towel forms the peak of the hood. The towel this time is a shade of red, and again has a wide collar, doing little to quell rumours of this owl's association with Dracula. Strange, because this particular species of owl is diurnal, meaning they're active during the day. Stephenie Meyer take note.

Original post – 20 Nov 2023
by Bird TLC

Website | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube
located in Anchorage, Alaska, US πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Part 1 here

Part 2 below

Were you wondering how the Northern Hawk Owl is doing? We have good news – he has moved from an indoor to an outdoor enclosure where he can exercise his flight muscles. We continue to be hopeful for his full recovery.

xray of NHO's fractured wing
NHO on its back, being examined. The gloved hand of a rehabilitator (in dark blue) immobilises the owl by holding its feet in place. The photo is more oblique than the first, which was face-on, giving a better appreciation for the owl's hawk-like profile. The one pupil that's visible is very wide within the moon-yellow iris. The owl's chest is barred, alternating between light and dark, and it's now clear the dark bands are composed of a shade of brown. The talons are clenched in a tight ball. The feet feathers are very dense, and much lighter brown, almost ginger and almost fur-like. Fuzzy boots.

Full story of this Northern Hawk Owl here:

https://www.birdtlc.org/birdtlcblog/2023/12/11/wings-of-winter-rehabilitating-a-northern-hawk-owl

Link to donate to Bird TLC for those willing and able.

xo owlsintowels

πŸ’›πŸ¦‰

SpeciesCommon NameMore info
Surnia ululaNorthern Hawk-OwlWiki link
]]> Rehabilitating a Northern Hawk Owl Pt. 1 https://owlsintowels.org/rehabilitating-a-northern-hawk-owl-pt-1/ Fri, 09 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://owlsintowels.org/?p=1827 This Northern Hawk-Owl is wrapped in a cream towel and held by a pair of dark blue medical gloves, presumably containing hands. The rehabilitator is framed behind the owl and wearing black. Some medical equipment is in the background bottom right. The back of the owl's head is flat against the towel, giving it the appearance of recoiling, or looking down its beak and judging the viewer. The owl's head is a trapezoidal shape; a flat top with a wide neck that broadens toward its wings. The feathers are a two-tone mix of light and dark shades of grey. Its forehead is mottled with light spots. Its beak and irises are matching, all a pale moon-yellow in tone. The towel is loose and open around the owl's neck, like an oversized collar. Possibly vampire attire. Incidentally, the owl's binomial name 'Surnia ulula' and the name 'Dracula' share the same last three letters. Have you ever seen a Northern Hawk-Owl and Dracula in the same room? I guarantee you haven't. Food for thought.

Original post – 20 Oct 2023

by Bird TLC

Website | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube
located in Anchorage, Alaska, US πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

We’re treating this Northern Hawk Owl for a wing injury and head trauma he sustained when hit by a car. We’ll know more about his injuries after we take radiographs, but first, we’ll give him a day to decompress from his recent stress.

Full story of this Northern Hawk-Owl here:

https://www.birdtlc.org/birdtlcblog/2023/12/11/wings-of-winter-rehabilitating-a-northern-hawk-owl

Link to donate to Bird TLC for those willing and able.

xo owlsintowels

πŸ’›πŸ¦‰

SpeciesCommon NameMore info
Surnia ululaNorthern Hawk-OwlWiki link
]]> Weighing a Tiny Owl https://owlsintowels.org/weighing-a-tiny-owl/ Fri, 21 Mar 2025 23:00:38 +0000 https://owlsintowels.org/?p=1235

Original post – 05 Mar 2025
by Bird Treatment and Learning Center (Bird TLC)

Website | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube
located in Anchorage, Alaska, US πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

“One owl burrito to go, please”

Boreal Owl patient who came to us with severe head trauma in January.

Update 15 Mar 2025

After spending a month with us recovering from head trauma, our Boreal Owl patient went back home to Bethel! It makes us so happy to see him flying free in his territory. Please wish him a good life!

Link to donate to Bird TLC for those willing and able.

xo owlsintowels

πŸ’›πŸ¦‰

SpeciesCommon NameMore info
Aegolius funereusBoreal owlWiki link
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