Snowy owl rescued from vacant Portland building released into wild

A snowy owl that had to be rescued last week after it became trapped inside a vacant building on India Street in Portland was released into the wild on Saturday.

Diane Winn, a manager at the Avian Haven Wild Bird Rehabilitation Center in Freedom, Maine, said the owl was released on Saturday at a midcoast area marsh. Winn, who corresponded by e-mail, did not identify the location.

Tom Gagne, an experienced falconer, who lives in Yarmouth, rescued the owl from the third floor of the Grand Trunk Railroad building on Wednesday. The owl was taken on Thursday to Avian Haven. Gagne reported seeing a lot of pigeons, alive and dead, inside the building which may have attracted the owl.

The owls have been migrating south from Canada because they are hungry. The Portland owl was reported to be plump and in good health prior to its release.