DURHAM, N.Y. (AP) — Shoppers in upstate New York earlier this month turned up a rare find while perusing a local antique store this month: tucked next to a cookie jar made in the shape of a chicken was a live owl resting peacefully on a shelf. Related Articles Los Angeles school supe rintendent placed on paid leave amid federal probe Injured mother manatee and calf are rescued in Florida and taken to SeaWorld Federal prosecutors won’t appeal ruling barring death penalty in Luigi Mangione case Neil Sedaka, the singer-songwriter behind dozens of hits of the 1960s and ’70s, dies at age 86 Renee Good’s parents remember her love and laughter The state Department of Environmental Conservation said Friday that the incident happened on Feb. 21 in the hamlet of East Durham, about 127 miles north of Manhattan. The agency said customers at The Market Place had spotted “something extremely lifelike” on one of the shelves and alerted store staff. Environmental conservation police officers arrived to find a brown-and-white owl perched on a shelf with its eyes firmly shut. The department said officers gently cradled the sleeping owl to remove it from the store, and then released it into a wooded area, where it flew into a nearby tree. The bird, an eastern screech owl, is nocturnal and typically nests in tree cavities. It is not immediately clear how it got inside the store. An email was sent to the store’s owners on Friday. ...read more read less