OAK BAYNEWS Cookie monsters wanted
Revenge is sweet
Girl Guides will be out in force with their chocolate and vanilla cookies. News, Page A4
Victoria Cougars reclaim Jr. B Patterson Cup with a sweep of Peninsula. Sports, Page A17
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
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Teens find suspicious device on beach
Owl rescue, reunion
Laura Lavin
On Feb. 4, Norman Prelypchan and his wife Trudi noticed something peculiar. While out for their afternoon walk along Beach Drive near Mountjoy Road, they came across a dead squirrel and moved it to the side of the road. But it wasn’t the initial encounter with the roadkill that took the Prelypchans aback. Later on when they returned for their evening walk, the same squirrel was once again back in the centre of Beach Drive, only this time, a second automobile victim lay by its side. “There was an owl lying on its back, its head lulled over and blood coming out of its beak,” Norman said. “It was just heart-rendering, really. “Its chest was heaving very quickly, many times per second, as if she might have been in a death throe.” Norman picked up the owl by its talons, wings flopped to the side and placed it away from the road. Assuming the animal was at the end of its life, Norman turned back to walk home. Then came a rustling from the brush. The owl attempted to stand in what looked like a “drunken stupor,” he said. Shortly afterward, Norman contacted the B.C. SPCA Wild Animal Rehabilitation Centre (ARC), which sent a driver out to pick up the bird, an adult female barred owl. At 11 p.m. she was taken to Central Victoria Pet Hospital and onto Wild ARC. There, she was treated for head trauma and extensive bruising to her left wing. She also had a substantial amount of blood in her nose and eyes – a concern given the species’ reliance on night vision for hunting. “Owls can very much defend themselves with claws and beaks, but in this case it was lying on its side and definitely not able to fight,” said Kari Marks, Wild ARC manager.
One couple’s urban wildlife adventure sees happy ending thanks to Wild ARC Natalie North News staff
News Staff
Tai Orser, his brothers and cousins will have an exciting tale to tell from their spring break adventures. Tai and company were walking on the beach at Loon Bay in Oak Bay Saturday afternoon (March 24) when they came across a suspicious looking object. “When we found it we were just curious. We looked at it and noticed that it looked really weird … it’s not every day you find a cell phone strapped to a battery charger with wires coming out of it,” the 13-year-old said. They called their uncle over and he snapped a photo of the object with his cell phone and told the boys to back off. Tai then ran back home and asked his mother, Daisy, to call police. “I played it down on the phone because I hadn’t seen it,” said Daisy. Oak Bay police were glad to receive the call. “The device appeared to be an explosive consisting of a cell phone taped to a battery connected by wires to possible explosives,” said Oak Bay Const. Eric Thompson. “They did the right thing by not handling it and immediately notified their parent who called police.” PLEASE SEE: Bomb-like object, Page A13
Don Denton/News staff
Wild ARC wildlife rehabilitator Louise Dykslag holds an owl she is about to release on Mountjoy Avenue. The owl was found in the neighbourhood badly injured. Wild ARC nursed the bird back to health and then released it back into its old territory.
PLEASE SEE: ‘Emotional’ finish to rescue, Page A11
Get Your Smile Ready for Spring In-office bleaching available
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