NGO rescues 4 rarely seen barn owls

Ravi Chandel

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, November 20

Four barn owls, an endangered species, were rescued from Behman Diwana village by an NGO and handed over to the Forest Department

Adarsh Welfare Society, an NGO, received a call on Saturday evening about the barn owls, which is not commonly seen in the region.

Manish Pandhi, president of the NGO, said, “After receiving the call, we went to the spot and also called up Divisional Forest Officer Harbhajan Singh, urging him to send officials on the spot.”

Till the time they reached the spot, forest range officer Gurpreet Singh Dhillon was already there.

They found four barn owl chicks in a pitiable condition and the school children were teasing them.

After giving them initial treatment, they were handed over to the Bir Talab Zoo in-charge, he added.

Forest range officer Pawan Sridahar said, “Though the condition of the barn owls is stable, they are afraid of human beings. Till the time barn owls adapt to the new environment, we will not allow visitors to see them.”

On their life span and behaviour, he said, “It is yet to be found out that of 28 sub-species of the barn owl, these new members in Bir Talab Zoo belong to which species.”

Three rescued in Visakhapatnam

A few days ago, three barn owl chicks were found at a construction site in Visakhapatnam. Out of curiosity, the onlookers made videos and took photographs of the owls, thinking that they were aliens.

Later, veterinarian experts clarified that the birds belonged to barn owl species. They stated that when birds get attention, they tend to be observant, which is probably why they look alarmed.