From Badger Run Wildlife Rehab

Owls are shape shifters. They routinely make themselves look bigger or smaller depending on the situation. Sometimes they make themselves look long and thin in order to camouflage (look more like a branch when sitting in a tree). Other times, they puff up to look huge and scary when threatened.

The pictures below (*above now!) are of an African owl, the White-faced Scops owl. And no, this is not photoshop. They absolutely can skinny-up like this.

(Photo posted by Avian Conservation & Education Network back in 2018)

From California Raptor Center

This past May, a fledgling Great Horned Owl was found on the ground near the Dixon Waste Water Plant. It is assumed that he suffered head trauma. Officer Michael Barnett of Solano Humane Animal Services, who also happens to be a CRC volunteer in his free time, retrieved the owl and brought it to our facility in Davis.

During the owl's intake at the CRC, he was diagnosed with head trauma, severe mydriasis (dilated pupil) on the right side, anisocoria (uneven pupils), and superficial corneal ulcer. It is suspected that these conditions resulted from optic nerve inflammation, likely caused by the head trauma. After treatment, the owl recovered from his head trauma and corneal ulcer, but his severe mydriasis remained. After consultation with ophthalmology at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, it was suggested that he could still see from his right eye despite the chronic pupil dilation.

Eventually, the owl flew, navigated, and landed on perches well at the CRC's aviary, leading to his transfer to Lindsay Wildlife Experience for live prey hunting. He graduated from "mouse school" after being very successful at hunting live prey in Lindsay's aviary, and then was transferred back to the CRC for release.

After confirmation from the City of Dixon Engineering Department, we were able to release the owl at the Valley Glen Drainage Pond, which was somewhat near where he came from, but a much better habitat. Officer Barnett released the owl he helped rescue. The owl exited the box, took a quick hover to look around, and ultimately flew off into the night.

LIVE: Israel blows up Gaza City homes as Palestinians ordered to flee | Israel-Palestine conflict News | Al Jazeera
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2025/10/3/live-israel-blows-up-gaza-city-homes-as-palestinians-ordered-to-flee

- Israeli forces shoot and wound 2 Palestinians in occupied West Bank
- Gaza City residents describe ‘horror’ of Israel’s ground invasion
- Overnight attacks hammer Gaza City, Khan Younis killing 3

#Palestine #Gaza #Israel
@palestine@fedibird.com

Hanoi (AFP) – The death toll from Typhoon Bualoi in Vietnam rose above 50, the government said Friday, with more than a dozen people still missing days after the storm triggered widespread flooding.

Bualoi slammed into central Vietnam late Sunday with winds of 130 kilometres (80 miles) per hour, and lingered over land for almost 12 hours.

Heavy rain from the storm inundated the capital Hanoi this week, and floods and landslides damaged more than 200,000 homes, public infrastructure and farmland across the country.

The environment ministry estimated damage from Bualoi may cost up to $600 million.

The storm and its aftermath have killed at least 51 people, while 14 others are missing, the ministry said in its latest update on Friday.

Landslides killed several people in the country's northern mountainous areas, and disrupted access to tourist attractions like Sapa and Mu Cang Chai.

Images on state and social media showed roads completely destroyed and massive rocks and earth blocking mountain passes.

Weather forecasters said floodwaters had begun receding, but warned Typhoon Matmo -- now approaching the northern Philippines -- may impact the north of Vietnam early next week.

Matmo would be the 11th storm this year to hit Vietnam, a country that typically records up to 10 annually.

Bualoi killed 37 people and forced 400,000 to flee their homes in the Philippines last week.

Human-driven climate change is turbocharging extreme weather events like typhoons, making them ever more deadly and destructive.

Between January and August, storms caused Vietnam $371 million in damage, triple the amount over the same period last year, the General Statistics Office said.

Typhoon Yagi killed hundreds of people in Vietnam last September and caused economic losses worth $3.3 billion.

From Harold Wilion

It's been quite a while since I've seen one of my favorite subjects, the Screech owl.

I went and visited an old friend last night that was in the hole that's been dubbed the "ear" hole and I'm sure you can figure out why.

She was molting for the past couple months and looked just awful. So much so, that I lost interest in shooting her. But now she's as beautiful as ever.

Just seconds after taking this shot, she flew right over my head to begin her evening hunt.

From MN Owl Tours

Need to get a tiny pair of shades 😎 for these guys 😆

Northern Saw Whet Owl

Gaza Strip (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – A Hamas official told AFP on Friday that the group still needed time to study a plan put forward by US President Donald Trump to end nearly two years of devastating war in Gaza.

The proposal, backed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calls for a ceasefire, the release of hostages within 72 hours, Hamas's disarmament and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

That would be followed by a post-war transitional authority headed by Trump himself.

"Hamas is still continuing consultations regarding Trump's plan... and has informed mediators that the consultations are ongoing and need some time," the official said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly on the matter.

Trump on Tuesday gave Hamas an ultimatum of "three or four days" to accept his plan, which has been welcomed by world powers, including Arab and Muslim nations.

Mohammad Nazzal, a member of Hamas's political bureau, said in a statement Friday that the "plan has points of concern, and we will announce our position on it soon."

"We are in contact with mediators and with Arab and Islamic parties, and we are serious about reaching understandings," he added.

On the ground on Friday, the Palestinian territory's civil defence agency -- a rescue force operating under Hamas authority -- reported heavy air bombardment and artillery shelling on Gaza City.

As Hamas mulled Trump's peace plan this week, a Palestinian source close to the group's leadership told AFP on Wednesday that the Islamist movement "wants to amend some of the clauses such as the one on disarmament and the expulsion of Hamas and faction cadres."

Hamas leaders also want "international guarantees for a full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip" and guarantees that no assassinations attempts will be made inside or outside the territory, the source added.

Another source familiar with the negotiations told AFP that the group was split over Trump's plan.

Structurally, the group's leadership is divided between officials based in the Gaza Strip and those abroad, particularly in Qatar -- which has acted as a key mediator with Egypt and the United States throughout the war.

Much of the Hamas's leadership has been wiped out in Israeli attacks throughout the war.

The source close to the group's leadership said that "two opinions exist within Hamas".

"The first supports unconditional approval, as the priority is a ceasefire under Trump's guarantees, with mediators ensuring Israel implements the plan," the source told AFP.

"The second has serious reservations regarding key clauses, rejecting disarmament and the expulsion of any Palestinian from Gaza. They favour conditional approval with clarifications reflecting Hamas's and the resistance factions' demands," the source added.

Hugh Lovatt, a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said Qatar would pressure Hamas to provide a positive, but "ultimately it's not just about convincing Hamas leadership in Doha, but also the leadership in Gaza, as well as Hamas members and fighters in Gaza," he added.

"Additionally, Hamas must then be able to convince other factions in Gaza," he added.

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/28317266

I had to temporarily move out. It took a few trips to move all my belongings.

No electric, so rather slow speed, but thankfully very little traffic here.

Ich begreife es einfach nicht. Es gibt kaum neue Produkte, die Marke ist in Europa imagemäßig völlig am Boden und der wichtigste Dude von dem Laden ein ziemlich offener Nazi und Rassist, der ganz nebenbei jahrelang irgendwelchen Quatsch über angebliche Durchbrüche faselt, die "schon nächstes Jahr" zu erwarten seien.

Oder habe ich einfach ein völlig falsches Bild von dem Laden?

cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/4874758

Archived version

China and Russia once again tried to interfere in Canada’s latest federal election but likely had minimal impact on the vote that was ultimately free and fair, said the foreign interference in elections watchdog.

...

“While foreign actors attempted to undermine it, it did not affect the integrity of the election. There were no significant security incidents observed during the election, no cyber threats and no incidents of violent expression,” Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections (SITE) Task Force spokesperson Laurie-Anne Kempton told reporters Thursday.

SITE — composed of the RCMP, Canadian Security Intelligence Service, Communications Security Establishment and Global Affairs Canada — is tasked with monitoring federal elections for foreign interference. But the public is only advised of foreign efforts if they meet a certain threshold for disclosure.

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