Burrowing Owl Festival draws crowd
By Terry Brady
tbrady@news-press.com
Originally posted on February 17, 2008

Owls like Cape Coral Real Estate as well as people!

TERRY BRADY/news-press.com A Barn Owl attempts to fly off away from Terry Ruthruff of TLC for Wildlife Saturday at the Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife's sixth annual Burrowing Owl Festival at Rotary Park in Cape Coral. Order Picture ALSO FROM NEWS-PRESS.COM Photo Gallery: Burrowing Owl Festival DELIVERING YOUR WORLD • Subscribe to The News-Press • Place a classified ad • Printer friendly version • Email this article

Over an estimated 2,000 owl and animal lovers made their way to Rotary park Saturday to take in the festivities of Cape Coral Friends of Wild Life’s sixth annual Burrowing Owl Festival.

“The main purpose of this festival is education,” said festival chairman Michael Orchin.

And on nearly every square inch of the property, information was available.
Over 60 animal-loving organizations and vendors set up tables offering the public pamphlets and or presentations, most hitting on preservation.

“It’s about what wildlife is and what it needs to survive,” Orchin said.
Orchin said the proceeds from the event, which were not available by press time, would all go toward local wildlife.

Orchin said they would use most of the funds to purchase weed-wackers, gas, and marking tape to mark off and maintain the estimated 2,000 to 2,500 burrowing owl nests in Cape Coral.

Orchin said weed-wackers must be used because a lawn mower would collapse the burrow.

“We probably mark off or remark about 600 (nests) a year,” he said.

Biologist Tom Allen, who is a member of CCFW nd works for the Florida Department of Fish and Wildlife, said there are about 2,000 burrowing owls in Cape Coral at this time.

He said the birds start searching for burrows in February as nesting season starts in March.

With peak season in April and May, he said most will start to leave their nests in July and August. He said he about 3,000 burrowing owls will be born this season.

However, with threats like hawks and traffic, he said only 50 percent will survive its first year of life.

Another threat to the Burrowing Owl is progress.

As vacant Cape Coral lots, an ideal home for the Burrowing Owl, becomes more and more scarce, the species has less places to live in as it lacks the power to turn up grass to make its burrow.

Because of this, CCFW held demonstrations on how to build a start-up burrows in yards and gave away perches for the birds to sit on and PVC pipe to mark the nest.
CCFW said the idea was to encourage people to give the birds a more successful environment to survive in.

“I love these guys (burrowing owls),” said Cape resident Lynda Hildebrand, 69. “We used to have nests across the street. Now, I don’t see too many. I would like to attract some.

“They are losing their habitat, and it’s sad.”

And so Hildebrand picked up some pamphlets on building a start-up burrow.

Bev Saltonstall of CCFW was at the start-up tent offering advice and information to those looking to attract burrowing owls to their property.

“If they build out Cape completely, without starting burrows, their will be no place for the owls to live,” Saltonstall said.

Through start-up burrows, which is a small hole the size of a hand-held garden shovel, Saltonstall said she attracted as many as nine owls to her Cape property.
And while the day was about education and fundraising, it was also about fun and enjoyment as there were numerous games for kids to partake in, animals to be petted, and food to be eaten.

Kindness Animal Hospital had a tent set up in the back where they painted children’s faces, colored their hair and gave out stickers and fake tattoos.

A screened in butterfly garden brought out the smiles and the cameras as a line of about eight deep waiting to get in was pretty consistent throughout the afternoon.

A few yards away was the TLC for Wildlife demonstration. The Sarasota organization brought in a variety of owls including the Barn Owl, the Great Horned Owl, the Barred Owl, and the Eastern Screech Owl. and offered facts about the birds and who surprisingly powerful they are.

“I like their really big eyes,” said Kevin McConkey, 13. “They look so deadly.”
“I like when they turn their heads all the way around,” said Sam Maciel, 6.
It was by far the most popular attraction as hundreds crammed in to get a look at the birds.

Because the star of the event, the burrowing owl, was not in attendance, CCFW offered burrowing owl tours that took people around Cape Coral to the more heavily populated burrowing owl sites.

Eujanie Wheeler, 54, and her mother-in-law Lorraine Wheeler, 78, came out of the festival with smiles and a mission.

They said they live across the street from one another and were going to compete to see who could get the most owls in their lawn.

“We loved it,” Lorraine Wheeler said.

Cape Coral Named One of America's Best Places to Live!

                       http://top100.relocate-america.com/

Cape Coral was built about 40 years ago by two land speculators who believed that the property's location on the Gulf Coast provided abundant sunshine and almost endless opportunities for waterfront living. The Rosen brothers purchased the property, platted the community and created more than 500 miles of canals. At 114 square miles, Cape Coral is the second largest city in the state of Florida. The brothers began a massive marketing campaign that resulted in the sale of nearly all of the 350,000 residential building sites, the majority to people who lived in other states.

The City incorporated in August 1970, and its population continues to grow rapidly. With more than 140,000 residents, Cape Coral is one of the fastest growing areas in Florida. Cape Coral is the 2nd largest city geographically in the state of Florida and is the 12th largest city in population. The city features thousands of waterfront residential properties on canals, including many with direct, saltwater access to the Gulf of Mexico and Charlotte Harbor. The supply and affordability of these waterfront sites makes Cape Coral one of the most attractive communities on the Gulf Coast.

The City is a large peninsula bordered by the Caloosahatchee River on the east and Matlacha Pass on the west. It is located between Sarasota and Marco Island.

Courtesy of the City of Cape Coral

Maps of Cape Coral:

http://www.flguide.com/cape-aerial.asp