Tigger's Story
Species: Tawny Owl
Hatched: 1992
Tigger was sent to the World Bird Sanctuary from another center in 1992. He had been injured as a young chick and was unreleasable. Tigger loves mice and venison, and is known to call in public, even during the day.
This medium sized round owl (just over one foot tall) is native to Britain and much of Europe. They live in woods and open areas with large trees for perching. With the loss of much of their rural habitat, tawny owls are moving into cities and suburbs. Their hunting techniques seem to be changing with their new environment, and it is hoped that these adaptations will allow them to survive where other species have failed. Even though Tigger is considered sweet and easy going by his handlers, his species as a whole can also be fierce little hunters.
Tigger can often be seen in the education portion of our Owl Prowl programs, where he frequently exhibits his willingness to hoot in public.
To adopt Tigger, simply click our donation button, make a donation of $75, and specify in your payment notes: Adopt-a-Bird: TIGGER. Also include your name, phone number, and mailing address so that we can send your adoption materials!
Every donation helps to feed, house, and provide medical care for the bird of your choice! Adopt-A-Bird Parents receive:
* A personal visit with the bird you adopt!!!!! Call 636-861-3225 to set up a time for your
personal visit.
* Certificate of Adoption
* Color photo of the bird you've adopted
* Sponsorship Card
* One year's subscription to Mews News (our quarterly newsletter)
* Life History and Natural History of the bird
* 10% Discount off WBS merchandise
* Invitation to Sponsors-only events like Camera Day
* Discounts on WBS Special Events
* WBS Decal
Natural History
tawny owl
Strix aluco
Description: plumage is chestnut brown, heavily mottled with grey, brown and black streaks; face is round with deep-set black eyes; plumage pattern gives this bird a blocky, thick-set look; like the American Barred Owl to which it is related, it lacks ear tufts
Sex: male and female similar in appearance; females slight larger than males
Length: 12-15"
Wingspan: 36-42"
Weight: 14-20 oz.
Habitat: mostly woodlands, parks, and recently, urban areas
Status: most common and widespread owl in Europe
Range: with the exception of Ireland, distributed across Europe from Britain to Scandinavia; into North Africa; North and West Asia
Behavior: territorial owls that use the same range through their lives; almost exclusively nocturnal, it hunts by swooping down on it's prey from a perch from which it may locate it's prey with it's keen hearing; males and females bond for life; the female lays 2-4 eggs in March or early April, in a hole in a tree or an abandoned nest; the female incubates the young while the male hunts, and feeds the brood for about 21 days; then both parents feed the chicks; the young owlets leave the nest at 32-37 days and scramble around on nearby branches (at this point they are known as "branchers"); by 2 months old they are flying and beginning to hunt for themselves; by 3 months they are independent and begin to disperse
Diet: small mammals and rodents, small birds, frogs, fish, insects and worms
Vocalization: the normal call is a duet: the female calls "To-whit", to which the male replies "To-woo"; another call heard primarily in the fall is a loud "kee-wick"
• This owl is so popular in Great Britain that it makes an appearance in many pieces of English literature, including "Winnie the Pooh" and the "Harry Potter" books
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