Owl swoops runner three times and steals hat in Vancouver’s Stanley Park

Vancouverites are used to encounters with crows, but what about owls?

An owl shocked a jogger by swooping down from the sky, and snatching his toque in Vancouver’s Stanley Park.

Lawrence Kamikawaji says he runs along a path near Lost Lagoon almost every morning around 6:30 a.m., but on Tuesday, he had the unexpected experience.

“I felt what I thought was a baseball bat hit the back of my head,” he said. “I was shining my flashlight around, and I saw a huge owl swoop down.”

He says part of the fear came from not knowing what was happening.

Lawrence Kamikawaji was running in Stanley Park when an owl swooped down from the sky and stole his toque. Nov. 3, 2022. (Monika Gul/CityNews)

“When you can’t see where it’s coming from, there’s just a innate fear that’s quite different than when you can see something coming at you.”

Kamikawaji says after the first swooping, he started running away, but was attacked by the owl two more times.

On top of cuts and scratches from the talons, and having to get a tetanus shot, he says the owl also stole the hat right off of his head.

“It took my toque off,” he said. “Sadly, I don’t have a toque anymore so I need to get another one.”

Although the owls won’t eat things like hats, one expert says they may be proud of their capture.

This sad looking Saw-whet owl looks like he was trying to dress up for Halloween, when he came in covered in black oil off a train. Now he has a coat of special powder to soak up the oil in his feathers before he is stable for a bath or two. He should make a smooth recovery pic.twitter.com/U4znpn8To2

— OWL Orphaned Wildlife Rehabilitation Society (@OWLRehab) October 31, 2022

“Oftentimes, they’ll sit in the tree with the toque, and you can look right at them, and it’s almost like they’re laughing at you. They sit there like they’re proud of it,” Rob Hope with the OWL Orphaned Wildlife Rehabilitation Society explained.

Kamikawaji says this was the first time he has been attacked by an owl, even though he runs the same path nearly every day.

But Hope says being swooped by owls is actually a common occurrence.

“We get phone calls every year around this time of year,” Hope said.

He says most of the time, it is barred owls that attack as a form of protection.

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“A lot of them are protecting their territory, or they’re young birds hunting in the area,” Hope explained.

“Unfortunately, they only see ponytails or fleece vests…that blend in the environment, and appears to be their food,” Hope added.

He explains the attacks usually come from behind, so the owls aren’t spotted by the prey.

“We know that these swooping, or these incidents, are actually most of the time [cases of] mistaken identity, and they’re not looking to hurt anyone,” he said.

After an owl swooped and snatched the hat off of Lawrence Kamikawaji, his head had scratches and cuts. He also had to get a tetanus shot. Nov. 3, 2022. (Monika Gul/CityNews)

“These birds aren’t doing it to be anti-human,” Hope explains. “Unfortunately, as we encroach in their areas and in the environment, these occurrences are going to happen more often.”

Kamikawaji says the incident hasn’t dimmed his opinion of owls, so long as he sees one in the daytime hours. But he warns people should be aware of their surroundings.

“I love owls, they’re majestic creatures. I think they’re wonderful, but not when they’re coming after you,” he said.

Hope says the best way to avoid being swooped is by not running during the typical hunting times of dawn and dusk, and to wear florescent colours like orange and yellow.