BENGALURU: Barn Owls, which used to live on farms, have adapted to the city life by nesting in its concreted crevices. As natural rodent hunters, they must be protected in a city struggling with its open garbage piles. Instead, Bengaluru’s human inhabitants are elbowing them and their nests out.Our traffic blinds them with bright headlights and the owls become roadkills, the pesticide we use to kill rats poison the hunter birds and superstitions lead us to killing them for their meat. As part of Wildlife Week, which was celebrated at the beginning of the month, city-based Avian and Reptile Rehabilitation Centre or ARRC started a campaign to build awareness about Barn Owls.
These birds can be found everywhere in the city: high-rise buildings surrounded by empty plots seem to be their favourite spots (sub-urban areas more than city centre). ARRC says they get a lot of rescue calls from the Whitefield region, BTM layout and Indiranagar.As the name suggests, Barn Owls would commonly be found in barns, and would hunt rodents from the surrounding fields, thus helping farmers by keeping pest populations in check.
“As agricultural fields gave way to urban settlements, these birds adapted themselves to live in and around us, nesting on our terraces/balconies, abandoned buildings or construction sites, controlling the rodent populations in our garbage-ridden cities,” says Jayanthi, one of the founders of ARRC.
Apart from shrinking habitats and green pockets, these birds are also being killed for superstitions and myths. “All owls are nocturnal and extremely quiet. These are excellent techniques to hunt prey, even in total darkness. But since these birds are night-fliers and are not easily spotted, humans have often feared them. People think owls are harbingers of death, listening to their call or seeing their faces is thought to bring bad luck. They are also associated with black magic,” she says. Many wildlife rescue organizations have been raising awareness about the Barn Owls over the years, says Jayanthi. “There is definitely increased tolerance towards these creatures in city.”
Spotted injured owl? Here’s what you should do
Like with any other wildlife, call your nearest rehabilitation centre. While the help arrives, make sure the bird is safe from your pets, as well as from the street dogs and cats. “If you find an owl stranded during the day, don’t shoo it away, it cannot fly during the day – wait till dusk and see if the bird leaves on its own. If you see a barn owl on the ground being attacked by crows, please place a cardboard box with some air holes over the owl so that it is safe until the help arrives,” says Jayanthi. She adds, “Please refrain from feeding the bird or forcing it to drink water. Try to keep the vicinity as quiet as possible and wait for help to arrive.”
Vehicle of Lakshmi used for sacrifice
In India, owls are also believed to be the vehicle of goddess Lakshmi, but this has also led to owls being captured and sold. In most cases, people sacrifice owls to bring prosperity. Owls are also associated with black magic and witchcraft, prophecy, birth, death, and many other natural and unnatural phenomena. Their meat is also wrongly believed to have medicinal properties.