Spot-bellied Eagle Owl juvenile @ Maredumilli - East Godavari district - Andhra Pradesh - India

Shot in May/ June 2011 A sad story - this young owl had fledged but wasn’t yet able to fly when it was brought down by stones thrown by local hunters... It was with a parent when this happened but the parent, unable to do anything, just flew away... the bird was destined for the pot, but word about the capture soon spread and some kind people in charge of the local eco-tourism lodge, Vanavihari, managed to to buy it off for small amount of money... this is the story of the bird as told to me by people f