Family finds owl in Christmas tree after a week: 'He was hugging the trunk'

[Judi Lynn]

The family had brought the tree to their home and decorated it before they spotted the bird, who initially didn’t want to leave

Associated Press in Atlanta
Fri 20 Dec 2019 15.22 EST



The owl nestled in a Christmas tree. Photograph: Billy Newman/AP

A Georgia family got a real hoot from its Christmas tree: more than a week after they bought it, they discovered a live owl nestled among its branches.

Katie McBride Newman said on Friday that she and her daughter spotted the bird on 12 December. They had bought the 10ft-tall tree from a Home Depot, brought it back to their Atlanta area home and decorated it with lights and, coincidentally, owl ornaments.

“It was surreal, but we weren’t really freaked out about it,” McBride Newman said. “We’re really outdoorsy people. We love the wilderness.”

The family opened windows and doors near the tree hoping the owl would fly away, but it didn’t.

More:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/dec/20/family-finds-owl-christmas-tree-hugging-trunk

[Karadeniz]

1. I'll bet Hooty was plenty hungry!

[Judi Lynn]

2. Georgia Family Startled To Discover An Owl Living In Their Christmas Tree

Georgia Family Startled To Discover An Owl Living In Their Christmas Tree
BY J. SWANSON

It must have seemed like Christmas came early for one Georgia family, which didn’t have to wait until Dec. 25 for their Christmas surprise. Weeks before the big day, they were startled to discover an owl was living inside their holiday tree.

Katie McBride Newman discovered the feathered stowaway when her 10-year-old daughter, India, reported that one of the holiday ornaments “scared” her. McBride Newman assumed the girl was talking about one of dozen or so owl ornaments dangling from the branches. Actually, India was referring to real life owl.

No joke, we just found a LIVE owl roosting in our Christmas tree. What?!?!?” McBride Newman wrote on Facebook. The startled family decided to leave their doors and windows open that night so the bird could fly away. But their new feathered friend, who appeared quite comfortable in his or her festive new nest, declined to leave the cozy house.

That’s when the family reached out to the Chattanooga Nature Center, which suggested they leave out some raw chicken in case the bird was hungry.



More:
https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/owl-christmas-tree/

[Historic NY]

3. Wait so he's still living inside now eating store bought chicken....

would you leave where it warm and snug and your fed.

[dhol82]

4. Ummmmm, so the House was infested with mice and they just noticed that the problem had

gone away.

[Bayard]

5. He looks like he's trying to blend in as an ornament!

Seriously.....how do you decorate a tree and not notice a live owl in there? If nothing else, there would be owl poop on the presents.