Young wildlife at DVWR are thriving!

Many baby Desert Cottontails are brought to DVWR in the spring for various reasons. Their round tails are dark on top and white underneath resembling a cotton ball and their large ears radiate body heat, cooling them during the hot summer months.

This 10 day old Great Horned Owl baby has just opened his eyes and his first look is of himself.  Young owls bond quickly with the caregiver.  This is not helpful because they must learn to be a wild owl & hunt for themselves. To prevent bonding with humans, we sometimes place a mirror in front of them so they can…

A sleepy baby Swainson’s Hawk arrived at DVWR.  A very kindly bird lover and member of the Audubon Society found the hawk that had been blown from its nest in Elko and together they drove to Fallon!  Along the way, a Fallon NDOW biologist was able to monitor care & feeding, thank goodness for cell phone…