Young owls in Calgary at risk of 'unethical' photography practices
Birdwatchers flock to owl nests en masse
Owls can be pretty easy to find in Calgary. Their impeccable camouflage, perfected over the course of millions of years of evolution, isn't very effective when the tree they're in is surrounded by dozens of photographers.
In a popular Calgary park, longtime birdwatcher and wildlife photographer Jean Wallace found herself in the presence of a family of great horned owls. That sounds like a magical moment with nature, but Wallace was concerned about the actions of other photographers.
"They were only about five feet from the owl tree and started hooting at them," she said. "Another woman then pulled out her phone [and played] a recording of a mother great horned owl calling its young."
Their attempts to trick the owlets into looking at them, coupled with some trespassing beyond park boundaries to get the right shot, compelled Wallace to tell the photographers they were acting unethically, to no avail.
"They just shrugged and went on taking pictures," she said. "I just walked away. I wasn't going to confront eight people by myself in the woods."
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Wallace took to social media to voice her concerns, affirming long-standing issues in the birdwatching community around ethical owl photography. Some popular wildlife groups on platforms like Facebook have taken steps to reduce unethical photography practices, including preventing members from publicly sharing animals' locations or posting photos of bird nesting sites. Some pages have even banned owl photos entirely due to the attention owls attract in particular.
Birders are always happy to see owls, but a line must be drawn between respectful birdwatching and practices that border on harassment of the animals, said Wallace.
"I think that when you start affecting their behaviours, whether they're flying away from you or flying toward you or freezing, it's stressful to them," she said. "It also can affect whether or not they're going to be getting enough food, whether you've interrupted their hunting process, whether or not you've interrupted them feeding their young."
Disturbance puts owlets at risk
Unethical photography practices can have dire consequences for nestling and fledgling owls, said Colin Weir, managing director of the Alberta Birds of Prey Foundation.
"Sometimes the parents can abandon a nest, or sometimes the parents will not come into a nest if there is disruption going on nearby, which could be very detrimental to the nestlings," he said.
Located east of Lethbridge, the Alberta Birds of Prey Centre is the largest birds of prey facility in Canada. The site covers 70 acres of wetland and is home to a wide variety of birds, including numerous owl species, for rehabilitation or, if release into the wild is not a possibility, as permanent residents.
Since 1984, Weir has taken in and rehabilitated thousands of birds from across Alberta.
"Most of the wildlife photographers that I've known or seen in the wild, their first concern is always the birds and their welfare," said Weir.
"Occasionally, there are a few individuals that sometimes push that envelope a little too far, and it leads to a lot of upset both for the individual owls, as well as drawing the wrath of birdwatchers, other photographers that are nearby."
While some wildlife photographers may appear to disregard the wellbeing of animals, many are simply unaware of the ramifications of their actions. Alberta is home to a supportive community of birdwatchers and wildlife photographers, eager to foster a culture of ethical practices.
"One thing that birdwatchers and wildlife photographers often like to do is chat and talk about the birds that they are observing," said Weir.
"Those individuals have a passion for wildlife, and quite often those individuals are very willing to talk to especially new people just to share their wealth of knowledge and experience."
Ethical birdwatching
Wallace strives to promote coaching novice birdwatchers, as a way to encourage ethical wildlife photography.
"As a community, we can help teach people who are new to this activity," said Wallace.
"But some people I don't think will change. They'll do what they want to do,"
Owls clearly indicate when they're stressed, including by standing straight with their eyes wide open or simply flying away. Wildlife photographers need to be responsible for observing the many cues animals give when there's a problem.
"One of the problems with owls is that many of them freeze as a reaction to stress," she said. "So then you get lots of photos because they're frozen … so I think it is tricky for people start to learn what those cues are."
To avoid interfering with the everyday lives of the owls she photographs, Wallace enjoys taking candid shots of them engaging in their natural everyday routines, whether that's preening, feeding or sleeping.
'Most of the people that I've encountered over the years are respectful of the wildlife that they're photographing, and really don't want to be stressing them out," she said. "So there's just a small minority that that might be doing things that I would consider harmful for the well-being of the animals."
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