By Joe Mosby

“Who, who, who cooks for you” is the trademark call of a barred owl. It may be the “tree full of owls” type or the “wise old owl.”

But these bits of folklore don’t quite touch the experience of Keith Newton and his fishing owl.

You didn’t know that an owl can tow a canoe around on the water, did you?

Newton lives in Little Rock but spends time on a family tract in the Hampton area of south Arkansas. He’s well familiar with the area and its wildlife, which include owls and which also include assorted fish. His recent quest was for fish.

Newton said, “I got a late start that morning for my paddle down Champagnolle Creek in Calhoun County. It was 8 a.m. when I shoved off in my canoe.

“I had a tub of worms, and soon arrived at my favorite fishing spot. After my second cast had been sitting about two minutes, I could not believe my eyes when a barred owl flew out of the woods and swooped down to grab my bobber. In the first instant, I was thinking ‘Oh my gosh, how cool is this?’ Then in less than a second, I had visions of bites and scratches while trying to remove a hook from a healthy struggling owl. I was saying aloud, ‘Oh no, please, you don’t want to do that.’”

Newton had a dilemma, but he reacted quickly.

He said, “After grabbing the bobber, the owl turned out toward the open water as I made a reach for my camera. I came out with it in my right hand and the rod in my left.

“I felt that I needed to reel in a little line as the owl was towing me out into the open channel. The camera made gripping the little crank a bit difficult. By now the owl ended up in the water, flapping its wings on the surface trying to swim or fly away from me.

“I had a macro lens on the camera, which is only good for subjects less than 10 inches away, so I was trying to remove that lens while playing my wildly trashing catch. Without an opposing thumb on our foot, why do we humans feel so superior? I could have used a couple of other hands about then.

“Finally the owl had turned back toward land the way it had come from as I was starting to get things together. Did you know that an owl can pull a canoe around pretty [well] when the air is still?”

Newton watched with amazement, taking a ride in the canoe with the owl furnishing the power.

He said, “When the owl reached a weed-covered log, it climbed out and perched with its back to me, as I popped off a couple of fuzzy shots from the hip without looking through the viewfinder.

“Then I realized that the camera was still in macro setting. So I made a couple of quick adjustments to the camera, while the owl stripped the worm off of my hook. It then flew over to shore about 20 feet away and landed. I took a few more shots, before it flew away. It was about then that started I started laughing like a simple fool.”

The barred owl sat on the bank and looked at Newton.

There was no verbal exchange between Newton and the owl, and the bird said nothing about cooking for him.

Newton said later, “About a month earlier, I had the opportunity to photograph a barred owl for over an hour at four different locations, which I suspect was the same owl. Since I am the only white bearded person down there who paddles the creek in a canoe, I’ll bet that owl recognizes me and has determined that I am harmless.”

Let your imagination kick in. What was that owl thinking? Was it silently asking Newton, “How did you like your canoe ride, buddy?” Or perhaps, “That wasn’t a bad-tasting worm. Got any more?”
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Joe Mosby is the retired news editor of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and Arkansas’ best-known outdoor writer. His work is distributed by the Arkansas News Bureau in Little Rock. He can be reached by e-mail at jhmosby@cyberback.com.