One Man's Owl is a 1987 non-fiction book by biologist Bernd Heinrich documenting his three-year relationship with a great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) in the Maine wilderness. Originally published by Princeton University Press and later issued in an abridged edition revised by Alice Calaprice in 1993, the book presents Heinrich's diary-format observations of a nestling owl he rescued after a storm destroyed its nest in Vermont. The narrative follows the owl, named Bubo, from helpless nestling to independent predator, recording his development, hunting behavior, and interactions with other species while living in a semi-wild state around Heinrich's cabin at Camp Kaflunk. Heinrich, a professor of biology at the University of Vermont, combined personal observations with scientific literature to document the owl's maturation, prey recognition, territorial behavior, and the mobbing responses of other birds to the owl's presence. The first edition was chosen as a book club selection by the Nature Book Society and the Library of Science.
Summary The book chronicles the relationship between biologist Bernd Heinrich and a great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) he names Bubo, spanning three years in the Maine wilderness. Written in diary form, the narrative begins when Heinrich discovers a nestling owl on snow-covered ground in a Vermont pine forest after a storm destroyed its nest. Rationalizing that a study of the ontogeny of owl hunting behavior would justify his rescue in the eyes of the law, Heinrich takes the owlet into his care. The narrative follows Bubo's development from a helpless nestling to an independent predator, documenting Heinrich's observations of the owl's behavioral traits and maturation process. The early sections detail Bubo's initial weeks in Heinrich's house, where the owl learns basic coordination and exhibits innate hunting responses through play-pouncing on inanimate objects before he can even fly. Heinrich then transports Bubo to Camp Kaflunk, his rustic cabin in the Maine woods, where the owl begins to explore his surroundings while maintaining the cabin as his base. As Bubo develops his flying abilities and gains freedom to roam the surrounding forest, Heinrich documents his hunting attempts, feeding behaviors, and territorial establishment. The author feeds Bubo primarily on roadkills collected during his daily runs, supplemented by prey caught by the cabin's resident cat, while observing how the owl learns to distinguish between potential prey and non-prey items. A significant portion of the narrative explores mobbing behavior, as Heinrich raises two crows, Theo and Thor, to study their interactions with Bubo. These observations reveal complex dynamics between predator and prey species, with the crows exhibiting both instinctive and learned responses to the owl's presence. Heinrich documents how various bird species react differently to Bubo, from aggressive mobbing by blue jays protecting their nests to complete indifference by migrating warblers. The volume details numerous experiments and observations regarding Bubo's hunting techniques, prey recognition, caching behavior, and territorial defense, including his aggressive responses to human visitors whom he perceives as threats to his territory. As the narrative progresses through the summers, Heinrich describes Bubo's increasing independence and decreasing reliance on provided food. The owl develops sophisticated hunting skills, successfully captures various prey, and establishes dominance over his territory around the cabin. The relationship between Heinrich and Bubo evolves from one of caretaker and dependent to a more distant association, with Bubo visiting primarily for food rather than companionship. Throughout the work, Heinrich enriches his personal observations with information from scientific literature on great horned owl biology, including discussions of their diet, anatomical specializations, breeding patterns, and molting strategies. The chronicle concludes with Heinrich's departure from the woods at summer's end and Bubo's transition to complete independence. In an afterword added to the abridged edition, Heinrich reports possible subsequent sightings of Bubo, including an encounter by his nephew while grouse hunting near Jefferson, Maine, and another sighting in Camden three years after their last meeting, though neither can be definitively confirmed as the same owl.
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