Photos: Burrowing owls find safe haven in Marco Island

Allison Smith, a student researcher at the University of Florida, returns a female burrowing owl to its home after banding its leg for future study in a vacant lot Thursday, March 1, 2018 in Marco Island. Smith has access to 60 total sites on the island allowing her to study and engage with these threatened birds.

Allison Smith, a student researcher at the University of Florida, bands a female burrowing owl for future study near a vacant lot Thursday, March 1, 2018 in Marco Island. The band will allow Smith to study the bird for years to come.

A burrowing owl, with multiple colored bands around its legs, scans its surroundings outside of its burrow Thursday, March 1, 2018 in Marco Island.

A burrowing owl retrieves the hind legs of a frog, a kill that was most likely leftover from a previous hunt, Thursday, March 1, 2018 in Marco Island.

Allison Smith, a student researcher at the University of Florida, demonstrates how a trap is used to snag a burrowing owl as it enters or exits its burrow Thursday, March 1, 2018 in Marco Island.

A burrowing owl scans its surroundings outside of its burrow Thursday, March 1, 2018 in Marco Island.

Flying sand can be seen as a burrowing owl digs a deeper burrow Thursday, March 1, 2018 in Marco Island.

Allison Smith, a student researcher at the University of Florida, right, searches for a male burrowing owl that had flown away from its burrow Thursday, March 1, 2018 in Marco Island.

A burrowing owl scans its surroundings outside of its burrow Thursday, March 1, 2018 in Marco Island.

A burrowing owl scans its surroundings outside of its burrow Thursday, March 1, 2018 in Marco Island.

A burrowing owl, using a random assortment of garbage, decorates its burrow Thursday, March 1, 2018 in Marco Island.