While out for a walk in Vancouver’s West End, headphones in, trying to decompress from the day, something bumped into me.
Or, rather, flew into me.
At first, I thought it was a bat.
It swiped my left arm and fluttered right in front of me, causing me to stop dead in my tracks.
The animal was tiny, no larger than a pop can. It seemed confused, just as I was.
It got its bearings and landed on a blue truck right beside me on Robson Street.
To my surprise, the eyes staring back at me belonged to a tiny owl. I stood for a few minutes, in complete awe of this striking wildlife encounter right downtown. It seems just the two of us noticed each other.
The moment only lasted a few minutes before it took flight and left, assuring me that it was not injured and making me grateful for the experience.
While I have covered many people’s wildlife encounters, I have never had one like this myself. I took to social media to try and determine what type of owl this was.
It turns out that I am lucky to have had this moment.
What type of owl was it?
Martina Versteeg, a raptor care supervisor at OWL Rehab in Delta, identified it as a northern saw-whet owl.
“I think that is very lucky of you to spot one on their migrating route,” says Versteeg. “There’s buildings in the way, instead of just Stanley Park. These guys tend to go a little bit lower and need to rest in the trees.”
Northern saw-whet owls tend to be very small at about 80 to 100 grams, or sometimes even 60 grams.
“We’ve kind of impacted how their life is now, but I am glad to see that it flew away,” she says.
After watching the video, the owl does appear to be quite alert.
“It’s looking around in every direction, so that’s a good thing,” Versteeg says. “He looks a little bothered because he’s out in the open but kind of the best he can do.”
She hopes people living downtown can do their part to keep owls safe. That includes closing blinds to prevent them from flying into windows and keeping cats indoors because a lot of owls rest in bushes during their migration.
“They’re the cutest little things, they think they’re hiding and blending in.”
OWL Rehab does have a 24-hour reporting line for people who spot owls in distress at 604-946-3171.
There are also some people who believe seeing an owl is a sign of both good and bad luck.
Versteeg admits there is a lot of folklore that says seeing an owl can be bad luck or a bad omen, but she think it’s good luck.
“How lucky are we that they’re still doing OK, and their numbers are pretty stable,” she says.
If you don’t hear from me or see any of my stories published in three weeks, you’ll know why.
