An owl belonging to a rare species, with severely injured wings, was rescued and sent to the Bombay SPCA Hospital on Tuesday, thanks to the alertness of two students residing in Lower Parel.

The students—Nitin Walmiki (25) and Amol Kumbhar (24) — who are pursuing MSc in Oceanography and Environmental Sciences respectively, noticed the bird near Uran-JNPT Highway in a critical condition. The owl, which they have identified as the Indian Great Horned Owl, is one of the rarest Indian birds.

According to the students, its right wing was injured and was riddled with maggots. “The bird is a sub-adult, with a left wing span of nearly three feet and height of over one feet. However, large midge worms covering its injured body indicated that the wound was old. However, the owl seemed to have a strong immune system,” Walmiki said.

The Great Horned Owl is an endangered species across the world, according to the IUCN list. “In India, they are rampantly used by tantrics for black magic. They are often burnt alive or killed to appease the Gods,” Walmiki said.

“We took the bird to a nearby village and applied turmeric over its injury. The bird was very active and pecked us several times while being given the first aid,” said the students. Later, they took the owl home, cleaned its wound and applied Soframycin skin cream over it. “We then fed it some chicken liver and intestine. Despite its trauma, the owl ate the food,” Walmiki said.

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