There’s a first for everything, and this ‘Owl and Turtle’ scenario was definitely a first for the Animal Welfare League of Arlington.
The AWLA responds to a wide variety of animal emergencies. When they got a call about an owl in a resident’s backyard with problems flying on July 12, Deputy Animal Control Officer Ryan Robinson went to investigate.
He found an owl’s talon clamped around a turtle’s carapace and plastron (top and bottom shell), effectively conjoining the animals.
AWLA reported that workers carefully dislodged the owl’s talon from between the turtle’s shells after the pair were brought back to the shelter.
This was a first for our Animal Control team – an owl and a turtle stuck together! #animalcontrol #animalrescue #allinforanimals pic.twitter.com/Ib7NpPatrw
— AWLArlington, VA (@AWLAArlington) July 13, 2021
The owl sustained a minor injury; the turtle was none the worse for wear.
A licensed wildlife rehabilitator will care for the pair until they are well enough to be released into the wild.
Neither the owl nor the turtle commented about how they got stuck or whether they were emotionally injured or embarrassed by the incident.
