Seven baby owls were returned to their nest after being stolen from an old bunker in the Santa Ana River wash. Police found the owls in a bucket at the back of a car during a routine traffic stop.

The sherrif’s department called in animal rehabilitation specialist Lenor Wills who explained, “One of the biggest myths is that parent birds won’t take the babies after they’ve been handled and that’s not true. Almost always, if they blow out of the nest, you can take them back and they’ll be fine”

The driver of the vehicle was intending to sell the baby owls in a pet shop.