Of course this officer gave a hoot.
Duluth police officer Richard LeDoux responded to a call Monday night from a citizen reporting that an owl appeared to be injured and in the road near well-traveled Superior Street and 21st Avenue E.
But just as LeDoux arrived and was about to call an animal rescue group, the mostly white barred owl rose and perched itself on the other side of the squad's windshield as LeDoux sat behind the wheel, said police spokesman Ron Tinsley.
Just before the bird flew off, LeDoux grabbed his cellphone and snapped off a photo showing the stoic owl giving the officer a wide-eyed stare that is now making the rounds on the internet.
"It was there maybe a minute or so. It didn't seem to be in any hurry," LeDoux told the Duluth News Tribune.
Barred owls are commonly seen year-round throughout the eastern half of the United States and in a wide stretch of Canada and into the U.S. Pacific Northwest. They prefer large, mature forests located near water.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources says this owl, which stands up to 20 inches tall and weighs a pound or 2 upon reaching adulthood, is easily identified by its evening call, which sounds like "who cooks for you, who cooks for you-all."
