Not a parrot, but...

mh434

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BC, Canada
Parrots
Yellow-naped Amazon "Sammy"
Love birds (4)
Green-cheeked Conure "Skittles" - now, sadly gone from my life
Blue-Crowned Conure "Tequila"
African Grey "Reno" - sadly, now gone from my life
I know this isn't a parrot incident but, as we're all bird people & love 'em to pieces, I thought I'd share this one.

This handsome guy (Barred owl) came to visit us one night last winter. We were watching TV, and kept hearing thumps on our (2nd floor) living room window. Whenever we looked, there was nothing there. At one point, we peeked out on the balcony, and this guy was sitting there on the corner of the railing, staring intently at a window off to the side - with cages of Lovies on the other side! He was clearly intent on having one for dinner, but the screen & double glazing wasn't making that easy.

While we were out on the balcony, he went for the window again, and got his claws (talons, I suppose!) caught in the window screen. Thankfully, he freed himself without injury.

My wife had just gone to grab her camera, and the owl flew off to some tree tops 50 yards or so (and 100' up) away. It was very dark, but I was still able to spot him in the treetop with a powerful LED spotlight.

My wife was lamenting not being able to get pics of it so, entirely in jest, I stuck my arm out like a perch, and called to the owl. We were watching it (with the spotlight) and could see its reaction - it dipped its head, took off, swooped down to me, and flared for landing on my arm! It was at that point I considered 1) hmmm...thin sleeves on my jacket, and 2) long talons, so at the last second I gently pulled my arm back, and the owl landed on the railing beside me, appearing slightly miffed at the rejection!

He was amazingly calm. I stood and talked to him for about 45 minutes, and was able to reach out and stroke his head & "skritch" his neck - he was clearly enjoying it as, at one point he settled in with one foot up, all fluffed up, and closed his eyes.

We were able to see him close up (I backed away from him some, so my wife could take this picture) and he wasn't banded, which I would have expected if he'd been tame/released. He lives on our property among the first-growth cedars and, although we see him from time to time, we haven't had another "close encounter".

Anyway, I was so thoroughly charmed with this encounter, I had to share it here, with other bird lovers. Hope that's okay!
 

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......

Anyway, I was so thoroughly charmed with this encounter, I had to share it here, with other bird lovers. Hope that's okay!

Nah, that's BETTER than ok!!! :D

THANK YOU for sharing your terrific encounter with one of these gorgeous birds! I have goosebumps! Owls are one of my absolutely favorite birds in the world! :D

AWESOME photo!!!
 
He's so pretty! Lucky you he was in a good mood and let you get so close!
 
He's beautiful. I can't believe that he flew to you. Must have sensed that you were "bird people".
 
Wow, beautiful! I'm also surprised a wild animal was willing to get so close.

Now for him to land on your arm, that would 'almost' be an experience worthy of getting your arm ripped up over! Nah, a little too painful :D Great photo of him so close anyway. Thanks for sharing.

Edit: I just re-read and saw that you actually were able to pet it! How could that be with a wild animal? I wonder if it was captive at one point? Any insight into this? I find this amazing!
 
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That is a great story! So cute! Thanks for sharing!
 
Very cool story!

Just a side note, bands don't necessarily mean captive birds. Wild birds are caught and banded all the time so they can be studied (where they go, how long they live etc.) http://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/bbl/
 
I dream of something like that happening to me! What a beautiful creature he is and how lucky you were that he wanted to spend some time with you one night. Thanks so much for sharing! :) :) :)
 
WOW! Thanks for sharing your incredible experience! It's amazing he let you actually touch him. I'm glad you were able to take that beautiful photo.
 
Omgoodness, what a beautiful creature!! I would Love to have owls living on our property. That is an amazing experience. Thank You So Much for sharing!! [emoji177]
 
That is truly amazing!! Thanks so much for sharing!!
 
That's remarkably tame for a wild owl...

We had a great horned owl living in a neighbor's tree across the street in Cali.

Unfortunately for Demitre, that was the tree he decided to fly to when he got out.
 
Thank you for sharing that amazing story! Not too many people can claim to have pet a wild owl. I wonder if he'd come to you, again?
 
How amazing, and thanks for sharing the picture with us all! I would have kept my arm out, but I never think about consequences!
 
When I vounteered at the Lindsay we always used a raptor glove to handle the owls. I'm guessing that a T-shirt would not have cut it.

So, even if he was arm trained at some point in his life, it was probably a smart idea not to offer up an arm... but it would certainly be worth borrowing a glove and trying it just to find out!
 
Amazing! I've seen a Barred in my backyard before, but a wild creature coming close enough to touch and allowing you do so is simply awesome. I can only imagine how you felt. It must have been breathtaking!
 
Yup - I had chills running up & down my spine almost the entire time. I just couldn't believe what was happening! If we didn't have pics (actually, quite a few - my wife kinda went nuts with her camera) and a witness, I would have thought it was just a dream.

What really amazed me is that he was so...blase...about the whole thing, like it happens all the time! If it weren't for the fact that he wasn't banded (and all wild bird programs in the area include closed-banding of ALL captured raptors) I would have thought that he had been handled & released.

He showed no fear (or even concern) at all, just content at receiving attention.
 
Wow!!!! What an amazing encounter!!!

I'm not sure I would've had the quick thought about the talons...but at least you would've had the scars to prove it [emoji6] lol

That's amazing that he let you get that close, let alone touch him [emoji33]
 

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