It was a busy morning in June, 2009 when a rescuer arrived at the TWRC Wildlife Center with a small fluff of feathers. Lethargic and covered in fly eggs, the little owlet from east Houston must have been displaced from its tree cavity for quite some time. The TWRC vet room staff warmed her up in the incubator, carefully removed the fly eggs and transferred her into the care of a TWRC raptor rehabilitator. Over time the small owl grew strong and brimmed with personality. One thing that did not grow or develop, however, was her right eye. A congenital birth defect left the eye small and with impaired vision. An owl that cannot benefit from its superior vision adaptations would not be able to hunt or protect itself in its natural habitat. The TWRC Wildlife Center easily made the decision to create a habitat and add her to the education animal team. Finding a name was a more difficult decision, and the entire TWRC Wildlife Center membership was included in a naming contest. 'Iris' won in a landslide with 'Squinty' as a distant second place.
Iris is known for being 'talkative' with her frequent vocalizations. Bird songs and other natural sounds are played for her, often, to mimic the experience she would have in the wild.
Thank you, INSERT NAME HERE, for providing the custom cage habitat for Iris.