Great horned owl glued back together

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- When a great horned owl is released back into the wild Monday night, it can thank staff members of Kansas City's Lakeside Nature Center, Super Glue and bamboo shoots.

The large raptor is able to fly and hunt again after staff members literally glued feathers from another injured great horned owl onto its body.

"I've never been involved in something like that," said Conrad Schmitt, the new director of the Lakeside Nature Center, who was a zoo curator for several years.

The procedure, called imping, is commonly used among falconers with captive birds. But Lakeside works with wounded Missouri wildlife and, when possible, returns the animals to the wild.

"I've seen it done, but this was my first time," said Ruth Van Wye, a Lakeside naturalist for more than two years. "It went really well."

The adult owl, probably a female, was found in May in Clay County. Apparently it had fallen into some chemical sludge that damaged its flight feathers.

After recovering at Lakeside, the owl underwent the 45-minute procedure Monday, with Schmitt and Van Wye holding its talons.

Six damaged feathers on each wing and all 12 of the tail feathers were clipped near their base. Similar feathers from a great horned owl that had a broken wing and had to be euthanized were prepared for attachment.

The quills of an owl's feathers are hollow, allowing the Lakeside staff to insert a short section of bamboo into the stub and the replacement feather, bonding them with glue.

"It's almost like a plumbing joint," said Schmitt.

The transplanted feathers will be replaced naturally by new ones when the owl molts in the spring.

A few days after the operation, the great horned owl was flying in a pen in Swope Park, rebuilding its strength.

"That's a great flight," Schmitt said Friday as he watched the owl fly in the enclosure.