‘Whoa That’s Cool’: 10-Year-Old Spots Owls On Threatened List At North Campus
As Skye Cowe glanced out the window of her father’s silver Dodge Caravan, she noticed three burrowing owls standing in a patch of grass that sits along N.W. 115th Street at North Campus.
Skye was familiar with the tiny owls, which can reach a length of nine inches and have white spots and sandy-colored feathers, because she had seen some in a park near a dumpsite in Parkland.
“I was like ‘whoa that’s cool,’” said Skye, a student at Global Field Academy, an extension of the nonprofit program Educate Tomorrow located at North Campus.
So the curious 10-year-old leapt into action. She snapped cell phone photos of the pint-sized birds, which are considered a threatened species by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and texted them to her class group chat.
Skye’s photos caught the attention of Monique Moyer, the Earth Lab director at Global Field Academy. Moyer informed Stephen Nesvacil, the North Campus Earth Ethics Institute program professional, who contacted the President’s Office at North Campus.
As a result, the area where the owls nest is—a small underground tunnel—was cordoned off with yellow caution tape and steel barricades because employees of the 2022 Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix were using the field as a temporary parking area.
“It’s pretty special to be able to see those birds and it was awesome that they were right there on campus and that [Skye] was able to notice them and protect them,” Moyer said.
Skye has always had a connection with nature. Prior to attending Global Field Academy, she was a student for three years at TreeHouse Learning, a school in North Miami Beach that provides students hands-on instruction utilizing outdoor and nature-based programs.
“She loved being outdoors,” said Leticia Diana, Skye’s mother. “They were outdoors all day, rain or shine.”
Skye has continued that lifestyle. She goes camping and hiking with her family at least twice a year. In 2020, they went on a 15-day camping trip in North Carolina.
“We are used to always looking out for animals and trying to find deer, bears or whatever,” Diana said. “We are always on the lookout.”
That culture has helped Skye form a bond with animals. She has a Siamese cat named Rawsun and a Betta fish named Moonlight. Her favorite animal is the wolf.
At the start of the 2021-22 school year, Global Field Academy students went on a field trip to the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science and each scholar picked an animal they wanted to research. Skye selected the eastern screech owl.
“She has a curiosity to learn and always wants to be moving, exploring, finding and creating,” said Virginia Emmons McNaught, the co-founder, president and chief business development officer at Educate Tomorrow.
That fascination with wildlife has Skye considering a future as a farmer.
“I like plants and animals a lot,” she said, nonchalantly. “And being a farmer, you can work with them.”
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