Oscar the blind owl, whose magical antics delighted school children, dies
He might have been little, but Oscar the blind owl touched thousands of lives as he hopped from hand to hand and enjoyed the pats his adoring audiences gave him.
Famous in North Canterbury, the little German owl turned up at Oxford Bird Rescue in a bad way back in 2016 – and changed the lives of carers Scott and Tracey Bowman forever.
Choking on his emotions, Scott recounted how the plucky owl had fought back against the odds to become a part of their family.
Oscar did not wake up last week after he was administered anaesthetic for ongoing eye issues.
With hundreds of messages from around New Zealand and the world the couple were taking comfort that their little owl had made a difference.
“He really was a special little guy.”
Some Choice News!
DOC is rolling out a new tool to help figure out what to tackle first when it comes to protecting our threatened species and the things putting them at risk.
Why does this matter? As Nikki Macdonald from The Post points out, we’re a country with around 4,400 threatened species. With limited time and funding, conservation has always meant making tough calls about what gets attention first.
For the first time, DOC has put real numbers around what it would take to do everything needed to properly safeguard our unique natural environment. The new BioInvest tool shows the scale of the challenge: 310,177 actions across 28,007 sites.
Now that we can see the full picture, it brings the big question into focus: how much do we, as Kiwis, truly value protecting nature — and what are we prepared to invest to make it happen?
We hope this brings a smile!
🧩😏 Riddle me this, Neighbours…
I am an odd number. Take away a letter and I become even. What number am I?
Do you think you know the answer?
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Poll: Canterbury is thriving on paper... but are you seeing evidence of Canterbury's improving economy?
As reported in the Press, Reserve Bank Governor Anna Breman recently gave a shout-out to our region, calling Canterbury a "stand-out" for how we recover from tough times. With tech firms growing and exporters investing, the business side of things is looking bright!
👉 But we know that "business growth" doesn't always mean the weekly shop gets any cheaper. While the city expands, many families feel like they’re just trying to keep their heads above water.
We want to know: With the business buzz of 2026, do you feel like things are finally looking up for your household, or does it still feel like a climb?
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16.7% Yes
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60.4% No
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22.9% In some areas ...
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