At this rate, Plump might need a new name.
Plump, was so named, because she was one rather chubby little owl when she was rescued from a roadside in eastern England. The “not-so-little, little owl” was drenched, fairly sullen looking and couldn’t fly, according to the Suffolk Owl Sanctuary.
“Usually in these instances we assume injury of sorts that is preventing the owl from flying,” the sanctuary explained upon finding the bird in early January.
“Occasionally becoming wet causes them to become grounded too – so you can imagine our surprise that when we examined her, we found her to simply be extremely obese!” the facility added.
And so, they named the athene noctua owl Plump.
This soggy little owl was found in a ditch. Usually we’d assume injury preventing the owl from flying – occasionally becoming wet causes them to become grounded – so you can imagine our surprise that we simply found her to simply be obese!https://t.co/nh8BicH85T
— Suffolk Owls (@suffolkowls) January 29, 2020
They even had her weigh in.
“She was a rather chunky 245g (which is roughly a third heaver than a large healthy female little owl) and she was unable to fly effectively due to the fatty deposits around her body,” the sanctuary said.
It was odd for a little owl.
Wild birds don’t usually get this way naturally.
Captive birds, perhaps, but not wild ones.
And, this bird had no signs it came from an aviary. No chip, no tag and it wasn’t drawn to pet-bird-type food.
Then, they realized she was found in an area rife with field mice and voles, courtesy of a warm, wet winter.
It was basically an owl buffet.
And so, she was placed on a “strict diet.”
“We can now happily say she has trimmed down by 20-30g to a more natural weight for release,” the group said.
By the end of the month, she was fit for release.
Plump was set free in the English countryside.
And Plump proved she was now as light as air.
Just maybe lay off the snacks for a while.
Photos Suffolk Owl Sanctuary
