Owl centre welcomes special guests for exhibit opening

A special presentation at the Saskatchewan Burrowing Owl Interpretive Centre (SBOIC) had children jumping like prairie dogs and walking around with their circled fists on their eyes.
Hinterland Who's Who hosts Jody Gienow and Louis-Rene Senechal were on-hand Saturday at the SBOIC's opening of a new burrowing owl exhibit, while at the same time promoting the conservation of not only the burrowing owl but also the prairie landscape.
During the presentation, Gienow taught the children and some of the parents in the room a bit about the burrowing owl.
She said the reason the owl has to turn its head in every direction, including to see directly behind it, is because the owl doesn't have peripheral vision like people.
To demonstrate Gienow had all the children make fists they could see through, put them over their eyes and then look around.
She said what they could see through their fists is what an owl sees all of the time.
Being that both Gienow and Senechal are from Ontario, Senechal said visits to Saskatchewan are few and far between. However, it is always "a happy reunion" with the province and the people every time he returns.
"You (Saskatchewanians) know how to make visitors feel welcome and that is something I miss if I don't visit on a regular basis."
As for the presentation, Senechal said he thought it went great.
Since leaving the air in the late 1980s due to outdated information, Senechal said those working to bring back the public service announcements (PSA) known as Hinterland Who's Who, have remarketed the program as an educational tool.
He said at the beginning of the 2000s, when the idea to recreate the 30-second clips was being tossed around the table, the hope for the PSAs was to get the next generation of youth hooked on the information provided in them, just as the generations before was.
He said the first year Hinterland put the PSAs back out into the market, the response shown by the public and the TV stations was great.
"We really got a lot of air time and it has been that kind of support that has kept us going."
At this time, Hinterland has over 15 new PSAs, including one it just finished filming right here in Saskatchewan.
As for Saturday's presentation, some people had the opportunity to meet Senechal and Gienow. Senechal said although the pair would like to go out and promote the conservation of wildlife to the public on a regular basis, they just don't have the opportunity.
However, he said it is organizations like the SBOIC that make his job that much easier.

Lyndsay McCready can be reached at 691-1256.