PORT ANGELES — Freedom is just another word for putting up with Steller’s jays.
A juvenile barred owl that was found tangled in kite string and dangling from a power line in Port Angeles in October was returned to the wild Saturday east of Port Angeles on rural property belonging to the bird’s rescuer.
The owl’s first flight was about 30 feet to a nearby tree. Within minutes, the bird had drawn the attention of several resident jays, who squawked their protest of the intrusion into their territory.
Kite-string predicament
David Kanters, owner and founder of CliniCare of Port Angeles Inc. — which closed Oct. 29 — discovered the owl and its kite-string predicament hanging from utility lines behind the clinic on East Front Street on Oct. 22.
Kanters, an advanced registered nurse practitioner, immediately took the bird under his wing, later transferring it to the Northwest Raptor & Wildlife Center in Sequim for a more detailed examination.
There, the bird was given a clean bill of health and was readied for a return to the wild.
Jaye Moore, executive director of the raptor center, said the bird was in good condition considering the circumstances of his capture.
Food and a few straightened feathers were the prescription for rehabilitation.
“We got him fat and sassy, and we got him ready to go,” she said.
Falcon breeder and raptor center volunteer Melissa Randazzo said Juliette, a one-eyed barred owl who is a permanent resident of the center, served as protector for the younger owl during its stay.
Served as protector
“She was really taking care of him,” Randazzo said. “She stuck by him the entire time, acting a lot like a surrogate mother.”
The newly released owl flew from tree to tree, staying close to its point of release, checking out the treetop neighborhood.
Each hop was accompanied by the increasingly-frantic chatter of disturbed Steller’s jays.
A crowd of about 30 people gathered to witness the event and followed the owl’s progress as it gained its bearings.
Moore said it was possible the owl would take up residence in the immediate area if no other owls had previous claim to the territory.
Kanters said he was happy to see the owl’s return to freedom.
“He belongs out there,” he said. “It was a good outcome.”
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Photojournalist Keith Thorpe can be reached at 360-417-3524 or at keith.thorpe@peninsuladailynews.com.
