Dear Oberon,
Mine is a two-part question. How did you come to live at NorthWoods, and why is your name Oberon?

Thanks,
Who Are You

Dear Who Are You,

Thanks for asking! “Who am I?” is a question that has stumped owl philosophers for many moons, as I’m sure it has the human variety. While delving deeply into this question on a metaphysical level may cover the pages of several books and screenplays, in order to answer this question in the form of a letter, I will simply give you my life story, such as it is, and you may take from it the lessons that you choose.

I was hatched into a life like any young owlet, unable to fly but craving adventure. Our nest was in a cavity high in an old tree, and my siblings and I would jump and climb around the branches, strengthening our wings and building our sense of independence. I continued to grow and started flying and eventually struck out to find my own territory for hunting and mating.

My friend Nathan and I a few years back. Nathan now works with a variety of raptor species at my old alma mater, VINS.

It wasn’t until I had reached maturity that my life changed. I was perched in a tree branch alongside an open corridor that crossed through my forest, which I now have come to recognize as a human road. As I had many times before, I was peering through the gathering dark to spy out a small mammal for my meal. One had run out onto the roadside to nibble on a bit of food which had perhaps been thrown there by a passing human. Excited about my upcoming meal, I launched myself into the air, swooping down on the mammal. Suddenly, I was clipped by a passing machine I have come to recognize as a human car.

My memories of the following days are limited, but I have put together that I was picked up by a human and brought to a healing and rehabilitation facility for birds who have suffered similar injuries. The place was called the Center for Wild Bird Rehabilitation at VINS (the Vermont Institute of Natural Science). They found over the course of my rehabilitation that I had suffered some brain damage in the accident and had been blinded in one eye.

These injuries limited my ability to hunt and survive in the wild, so it was decided that I would be adopted out to some human caretakers. I was brought to the NorthWoods Stewardship Center, where I was given a mew to live in and the noble name of Oberon after the Fairy King of Shakepeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. I have yet to read the play, but appreciate being named after a king of any sort. With my depth perception all out of whack, I was safe in the mew from any predators looking to take advantage of my disability. The mew has been my home for the last 10 years, and from its safety, I can ponder the other great question that has stumped owl philosophers since time immemorial, “Who cooks for you?”

While I am lucky to have been rescued and rehabilitated, I am a wild animal and sometimes wish I were still flying free through the forest. There are a few ways you can help keep birds of prey like me uninjured and in the wild:

  1. Don’t throw food out of your car window onto the road. While many people have been taught not to throw trash out of their car, people often don’t give much thought to throwing out biodegradable food scraps. However, this is exactly the action that led to my injury! Food along the roadside attracts many animal species to scavenge that food, and in turn, predators like me to feed on the scavengers! Unfortunately many wildlife injuries and fatalities are caused by car-strikes due to situations like these.
  2. Don’t use rodenticides. As we’ve mentioned in the past, rat poison harms more than just rodents! The poisons in a dead mouse’s body can be transferred to many species, including birds-of-prey such as myself, mammal predators, and even your dog or cat if they are unlucky enough to find it.
  3. Learn about your local wildlife rehabilitators. I was very lucky that someone found me and took me to the knowledgeable experts at VINS when I was injured. Not every region has a full wildlife medical center nearby, but most states have a regional network of independent wildlife rehabilitators who specialize in helping certain species. If you find an injured animal, call a rehabber. Even if they cannot help you directly, they can give you pointers on what to do (or NOT do!) to help, and who else to call. Click here to find a list of VT Wildlife Rehabbers.