Great Horned Owl tangled in net freed from batter’s cage at Maize South High School

An owl caught in a net in Maize is expected to recover after its rescue by police and groundskeepers.

Maize police said Monday in a Facebook post that a juvenile Great Horned Owl was found tangled in the net of a batter’s cage at the Maize South High School baseball complex.

Photos and videos shared by the police department showed the owl upside down, with the net wrapped around both of the bird’s talons and legs. As it flailed helplessly, it appeared that one wing was on one side of the net while the other wing was on the other side.

Officers and USD 266 maintenance staff were able to free and recapture the bird. The owl was taken to Eagle Valley Raptor Center in Cheney, where police said it is “doing very well” and expected to fully recover.

Eagle Valley specializes in returning injured and orphaned birds of prey back to nature. Great Horned Owls are the largest and most common owl living year-round in Kansas, according to the center.

This story was originally published June 7, 2021 at 8:12 PM.