Saw-Whet Banding Season

A Saw-whet Owl's head pops out of a glacier-blue pouch. The owl is held by a volunteer wearing an orange long-sleeve top, whose giant hand in the foreground gives a sense of scale of how small these creatures are. It's a night shot, but the subject is well lit against the dark. The owl's eyes are near-perfect concentric circles of black pupils inside green-yellow irises, focussed just above the camera. This one's feathers are white to ashy-brown.

Original post and photos by Sheena Davies – 04 Oct 2025

in association with Rocky Point Bird Observatory
located in Victoria, Canada 🇨🇦

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Original text:

A few weeks ago I had the absolute honour of joining my dear friend Taemar in something truly magical. ✨

In the middle of the night, deep in Metchosin, while most of us are curled up in our beds, an incredible group of dedicated volunteers are wide awake, carefully banding Northern Saw-whet Owls for research and conservation. My dear friend Taemar has been volunteering at Rocky Point Bird Observatory for the past 10 years, and now she’s training to become a permitted bander. When she invited me out to witness and capture what she does best, I could hardly contain my excitement – I’ve always felt a special connection with owls, and this was a dream come true.

From the moment I arrived, I was struck by the care and respect with which these tiny, ridiculously cute owls are handled. They seem to simply “hang out” as they’re gently examined—weights, eye colour, body condition, beak and feet, even whether they’re in moult (tested by the most tender little puff of air against their belly 🥹). Their wings and tails are measured, and then a tiny band is fitted around their ankle.

Side-on view of the Saw-whet Owl with beak obscured inside a ball of facial bristles, and eye looking like a tiny fish bowl bulging from its socket. The bander very delicately cradles the owl from behind, lightly pinching legs between thumb and forefinger, and tailfeathers between fore and middle. Their other hand adjusts the metallic band around the owl's ankle. The photo is lit like a renaissance painting; subject ablaze from headlamp, set against a dark and indistinct background.
The owl has an outstretched wing on a tabletop beneath the violet glow of a blacklight. A volunteer holds the owl's feet in one hand, and fans the feathers of the wing with the other. The tube light fluoresces the scene like a rave, highlighting the person's polished fingernails in brilliant white and the owl's feathers in a cosy red and pink. Although open, the owl's eyes are dark, and what little light is reflected in them is unexpectedly brighter inside the pupil than the surrounding iris, giving the owl a ghostly supernatural look.

My absolute favourite part of the process? Watching how researchers determine their age. Under the soft glow of a black light, the owls’ feathers reveal a hidden secret: a pigment that shines bright pink. The younger the owl, the more vibrant the glow. As they age, the pink slowly fades. It’s a breathtaking thing to witness – like holding a piece of living stardust.

A Saw-whet Owl is centre of frame with their legs lightly held in the volunteer's right fist. Their left hand holds a panel about the size of a playing card but half as wide next to the owl's face. The panel contains 4 shades of yellow ranging from pale ale to lemon orange Sparkling Duet, each numbered to help register the pigment of the owl's eyes.
A puffer-jacketed volunteer holds an owl, measuring the length of the wing feathers with a plastic contraption. At least I think that's what they're doing. The owl is prone, head facing forward and pupils heavily dilated, looking markedly less chill than previous photos.
Well-lit against a black background, the Saw-whet Owl is held on a volunteer's hand, now with an ostensibly calm expression.

When the examination is complete, the owls are gently placed into a small box and released to fly away on their own, wild and free once again.

An out-of-focus hand opens a wooden box to reveal the Saw-whet Owl inside. The camera is square to the box, framed like a Wes Anderson shot, and captures the owl standing atop a blue sheet of foamy material. A right leg is outstretched, as if mid-strut. The owl's eyes watch the hand on the wooden lid hinged above, with an expression a little dazed and dazzled. No longer poked at by humans, the owl is free to fly away.

I left with my heart full- so proud of Taemar and the work she’s doing, and in awe of these tiny, magical beings of the night. 💫🦉

And here’s the best part: Rocky Point Bird Observatory is always looking for passionate volunteers to join in their important work. If this calls to your heart the way it does mine, reach out to @rockypointbird you never know what kind of magic you might discover.

Link to donate to Rocky Point Bird Observatory for those willing and able.

xo owlsintowels

💛🦉

SpeciesCommon NameMore info
Aegolius acadicusNorthern Saw-whet OwlWiki link

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