Precious discovery leads to successful Transit Hill rescue and release of endangered Powerful Owl

A PORT Macquarie resident made a very precious discovery last month, rescuing a young, endangered Powerful Owl in the Transit Hill area.

The exquisite bird was found on 30 November following a crow attack, with the resident calling FAWNA’s rescue hotline for advice and delivering the owl to a local FAWNA coordinator.

In NSW, the Powerful Owl (Ninox strenua), is listed as a vulnerable species with populations threatened by habitat loss, lack of large nesting tree hollows, and predation by foxes and cats.

Collecting the bird the following morning, FAWNA’s Raptor Coordinator, Meredith Ryan, gave the owl a thorough assessment.

It was weighed and measured, and ultimately determined to be a young male by its weight and wing chord measurements.

“Even though there were no problems detected with its wings, eyes, legs, talons or body, it was decided a precautionary vet check should take place,” Meredith told News Of The Area.

“An appointment was made and Michael Ferguson at Wauchope Vets was consulted on the Wednesday, giving the owl the all clear.”

Under care for rest and recovery with FAWNA, the Owl, affectionately named Nino, became an adored patient.

“[He] had to first be ‘assist fed’ to ensure adequate nutrition before being encouraged to ‘pull’ his own food as he would in the wild, perching up high and dining on a possum, a glider, a flying-fox or other natural prey”, said Meredith.

“During the particularly hot weather, Nino was gently water misted for cooling and his excreta checked daily for any signs of abnormalities.

“Wildlife carers talk deeply and meaningfully about the shape, colour, size, texture and smell of what comes out of their charges’ rear ends – a great indication of health status.”

After a few days in care, Meredith and fellow FAWNA carer Andrew Ryan, took a site visit of the area where Nino was found and located a good spot to release him when he was ready.

On Monday, 8 December, a week and a day of being in care with FAWNA, Nino was returned to his home in a forested area and in the darkness, without the distraction of house lights.

“[Nino] was placed on the ground, had a few head turns, a listen, then flew away strongly with a distinct sound of strong wing beats,” Meredith said.

“Brad, the caller who first delivered Nino to FAWNA, was pleased to learn the release was successful.

“Such a lot of our work in FAWNA is wildlife welfare; dealing with animals called to us by the public and in so many cases they are beyond help.

“Successful releases like Nino’s are so uplifting and make the hard slog of wildlife rehabilitation such a joy.”

Anyone interested in joining FAWNA’s band of volunteers is encouraged to visit fawna.org.au and look in the “Join” tab for membership information and 2026 training course dates.

By Rikki WALLER