Mr. Bill, the Great Horned Owl who serves as the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center’s official mascot, has a new friend and roommate, a female Great Horned Owl named Virginia.
That’s Mr. Bill on the left and Ginny on the right
Virginia, named after the bird’s species name Bubo virginianus and nicknamed Ginny by DPNC staff, arrived at the Nature Center in late January from a wildlife rehabilitation facility in Rhode Island.
Mr. Bill had been alone since his Nature Center roommate Sam was released on Dec. 10 after four years of residence with us. Because he was used to having a companion, and in fact the two owls would typically roost together, the Nature Center put out the word we had a vacancy.
Ginny had been brought to the Rhode Island rehabilitation facility in the fall of 2014 after being found injured on the side of the road in Jamestown, RI. She likely was struck by a car. A veterinarian performed surgery on her broken left wing and it was hoped Ginny would be releasable. After recuperating it was determined that she would not be able to fly well enough to survive in the wild.
Ginny and Mr. Bill were introduced, and monitored closely to make sure they got along. A few spats to determine ranking in the enclosure occurred in the first couple of days, but they then settled into opposite sides of the enclosure. Now, Ginny and Bill are roosting together much of the time. Like any new couple, they jump apart when staff enters the enclosure to feed or clean, but we think a new match has been made.
When Ginny is settled, she will be incorporated into our animal education programming.
And speaking of Valentine’s Day, join us for our annual Valentine’s hike on Saturday morning! Click here to register.
Ginny Mr. Bill
