RESCUED OWLET RETURNS TO THE WILD

An owlet rescued by a passer-by from the army cantonment area at Tadong on 18 May, and cared for by a forester for 20 days, was released into the wild on Monday. Under the care of RO Ongden Lepcha, the owlet has started preying on its own, and its release, originally planned for Sunday to coincide with World Environment Day, was shifted to Monday because the RO was away on field duty over the weekend. The timing was still apt, since it was also his son, Aagen Lepcha’s [seen in pic with the owl] birthday and he got to release the bird. The owl soared confidently to the highest perch of a silver fir tree in the army cantonment area and celebrated its arrival with a hoot...