A Cave Creek nonprofit organization received an international award recently for its work in rescuing, relocating and breeding owls. Owl bet you didn't know that! (That is a joke.)
Wild at Heart, founded in 1990 by Bob and Samantha Fox, was inducted into the International Festival of Owls' hall of fame. The facility established the first foster-parenting protocol for raptors in Arizona, a model that has since been adopted by other rehabilitation organizations. At the facility, several species of foster owls and hawks care for more than 100 nestlings each year, Wild at Heart said in a statement.
The group also relocates burrowing owls that are threatened by development to an artificial burrow habitat. And Wild at Heart was the first facility to successfully breed the endangered cactus ferruginous pygmy owl in captivity.
Wild at Heart also provides educational programs, which it says "have touched the hearts of tens of thousands of people to further their understanding of owls and other raptors."
To learn more about Wild at Heart, visit www.wildatheartraptors.org.
Photo: From left, Wild at Heart co-founders Bob and Samantha Fox, and habitat coordinator Greg Clark. The owl species pictured are, from left, a great horned owl, a spotted owl and a burrowing owl. | Courtesy of Wild at Heart