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Harry Potter Endangers India’s Owls

Harry Potter craze has resulted in a national infatuation with owls.

By LIFS December 2, 2010 at 5:36 PM
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India’s environmental minister is blaming Harry Potter for endangering the country’s owl population.

 
Environment and Forest Minister Jairam Ramesh, says the Harry Potter craze has resulted in a national infatuation with owls, “Following Harry Potter, there seems to be a strange fascination even among the urban middle classes for presenting their children with owls.” The conservation group Traffic has also warned of threats to owls because of their popularity as entertainment for theme parties. Trading of owls is banned under the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972 of India.

Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling responded to the criticisms on her website: “There has been a spate of stories in the press recently concerning the upswing in popularity of keeping owls as pets, allegedly as a result of the Harry Potter books. If it is true that anybody has been influenced by my books to think that an owl would be happiest shut in a small cage and kept in a house, I would like to take this opportunity to say as forcefully as I can: please don’t.”

 

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Odds & Ends | Magazine | December 2010

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