(August 4, 2022) By all accounts, Morenci Tailings Dam Operator Frank Tellez is a Great Horned Owl’s best friend.
While performing a “water run check” early one recent morning, he saw something stuck on a grizzly, the steel screen in the tailings area through which slurry drains.
“I got a spotlight to verify what it was,” Tellez said. “I stepped a little closer and discovered it was an owl. As soon I realized what it was, I notified my supervisor. Unfortunately, animals that get stuck on a grizzly sometimes don’t survive. I felt this might be an opportunity to reverse this trend, as I could tell the owl was still alive.”
Thanks to Tellez’s initiative and the actions of several colleagues, the trend indeed was reversed, and the owl was rescued, recovered and ultimately released into its natural habitat.
Carlos Covarrubias, Tailings Supervisor-Morenci, received the information from Tellez about the injured owl and shared the incident during that day’s morning update. James Hogan, Environmental Specialist II-Morenci, who happened to be participating in that meeting, dispatched two environmental technicians to the scene and notified Terry Enk, Manager-Wildlife and Biodiversity.
“When injured animals are found on Freeport property, we always want to do the right thing,” Enk said. “We assess the condition and, if possible, transport the animal to a facility that can care for it. In this case, I suggested Morenci contact the Tucson Wildlife Center.”
Owl transported to Tucson Wildlife Center
Hogan contacted Tucson Wildlife Center, which agreed to take the owl if the Freeport team could get it to their facility. “Our hope was that the owl could be nursed back to health, and we could release it back to the area we found it.”
Frank Serna, Senior Environmental Technician-Morenci, and Josh Wilkes, Environmental Technician II-Morenci, answered the call, with Serna arriving at the tailings location first.
“The injured owl was under the step above the grizzly screen,” Serna said. “The owl was covered in tailings, soaking wet, and missing some tail feathers. It was unable to fly and appeared to have slight injuries.”
The team used a bucket to transport the owl to the recycle plant so it could be cleaned. “Using a water hose, we began washing off the owl with Dawn soap and water. Frank held the owl while I washed it off,” Wilkes said.
With the Wildlife Center agreeing to treat the injured bird, it was placed in a cardboard box with holes, along with blankets and paper towels for padding. Wilkes then set out for the three-hour drive to Tucson.
The owl spent about 10 days being nursed back to health. After a successful test flight at the Wildlife Center, the owl was ready to be released. The center asked that the release take place within a half mile from where the owl was found. Wilkes again made the trip to Tucson, picking up the healthy bird and bringing it back to Morenci, where it was eventually released near the Silver Basin Reservoir.
“It felt pretty good that an animal survived this ordeal,” Tellez said. “It was also good to see the collaboration between departments, working together to see that this was addressed immediately.”