This week in wildlife

It’s officially fall, y’all!

9/22/2024

For them whut’s experiencing fall-like weather, anyway; daytime temps are still in the 90s in Georgia.

Last week LWR had two intakes, both barred owls, both found in the road. One had only a mild concussion and is alert and ready for release now.

The other may have a right wrist fracture; he’ll need x-rays to confirm.

The x-rays on the red shoulder did indeed show a pelvic fracture, so he’s on “cage rest,” supposedly in a donut (when he cooperates) while we wait for it to heal. If only we could convince him to go on “vocal rest,” as well…

The second-year red tail is doing well and really ready to go, so we’ll see how things work out this week.

And the goofy juvie is still, well, goofy. He alternates between food aggression and “just leave it over there, slave, and I’ll eat it later.” But there are never leftovers!

There will be no update next Sunday, Sept. 29.

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Fall fever

9/15/2024

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Your intrepid rehabber has a bad case of fall fever and would rather be outside at the moment, so this update will be short and sweet!

LWR had only one new intake last week, an adult male red shoulder who came in Saturday afternoon. His finder witnessed the bird get sucked into the draft of the car in front of him and slammed to the road. Nothing feels broken but he can’t stand, leading me to think we have a pelvic fracture. He’ll be going in for x-rays next week so we can plan a course of action for him.

The rail-thin red tail from last Sunday’s update didn’t make it through Sunday night. As I’d indicated last week, I was hopeful but not optimistic for him.

The other two red tails, however, are doing great. The second-year bird is more regal-looking every day.

The juvie—well, he’s gorgeous, of course, but still the goofiest bird…I’d still prefer to place him with a falconer for a couple of years, but so far no candidates have panned out, so we may have to reluctantly aim at release instead.

And now, if it’s not rainy where y’all are, join me in getting outside for a while. Heck, even if it is rainy, grab a brolly, as the Brits say, and get outside anyway. Fall’s in the air!

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A trio of red tails

9/8/2024

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Nothing like havin’ three of one of your favorite species!

The sole intake last week was a first-year red tail who came in rail-thin and with a possible shoulder fracture. He came in near dark Friday, so it will be Monday at the earliest before we can get x-rays…if he makes it till Monday. His appetite and energy levels are up and down, even with small, frequent meals, so we’ll see.

He joins the other two red tails at LWR, who are biding their time awaiting release.

The second-year bird is moving from perch to perch and from the ground to the perches beautifully now in the mini-pen, but his level of aggression means I can’t put him in the main flight with a goofy juvie bird.

Said goofy juvie is flying well and has daily “show-downs” with the net I keep propped under the blind in the main flight. Apparently it insults him or something; he has to “kill” it daily. I walk into the pen to place his food in and check his water, and the net has been knocked down and dragged to the middle of the flight. I prop it back up; next feeding the net, having not learned its lesson, is again in the middle of the flight. And the juvie always has this innocent “butter wouldn’t melt in my mouth” look on his face: “Who, me? I haven’t touched that old thing.” Yeah, right, buddy…

Sometimes goofy juvie has a regal moment, though, that just takes my breath...

And because last week was a truly slow wildlife week, I offer you photos of some of the fall wildflowers around the property. Enjoy!

Star glory

Morning glory

Asian dayflower

Spider lilies

Hairy clustervine

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The eagles have…umm…flown(ish)

9/1/2024

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The last Thursday of August, DNR head biologist Bob Sargent and I met to transfer the eagles from my possession to his for transport to the Avian Conservation Center in Awendaw, SC, just outside Charleston. Center president Jim Elliott informed us within 24 hours of the birds’ arrival that Swimmer appeared to have compromised vision, which is something I’d suggested after her second failed release attempt. Most likely this will mean she’s also a candidate for ed bird status. Thus far, we have no word on their verdict for Wing-wrap but hope to know something soon.

As Bob said, it truly does take a village in wildlife rehab, something I’ve pointed out to y’all on numerous occasions. Individually, rehabbers tend to be independent, often ornery and cantankerous, but we know when and how to call on and cooperate with colleagues and official resources to ensure the best outcomes for the critters in our care.

Below are a few of the last photos I took of these two juvie eagles prior to their transfer. Enjoy—if previous trends hold true, these are probably the last eagles LWR will see for 2024 (and I probably just jinxed myself…).

LWR had only two new intakes for the past two weeks, both of which had life-ending injuries. The first was an utterly gorgeous first-year red tail with an open wing fracture. He was humanely euthanized.

The second was an adult barred owl who died en route to LWR from a nasty open fracture.

With the eagles out of the main flight, the juvie red tail went in—after the flight had been cleaned up a bit. He was utterly delighted to have room to actually fly; the first thing he did was fly strongly from one end to the other and back. He’s since discovered the joys of the fake-stone water dish, a radical departure from the stainless steel one he had in the mini-pen, and found himself a discarded eagle feather that I missed during post-eagle cleanup. That’s been his favorite enrichment item thus far!

The second-year red tail moved into the mini-pen, where he is moving from perch to perch and from the ground to the perches with no problems. Given his failed release in early August, this is good news indeed; his chances for release are now looking better and better!

Y’all enjoy what’s left of the Labor Day weekend; predicted temps in Georgia for the next week or so are beginning to look almost fallish…or at least less heat-of-Hell summerish…

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“The best-laid plans o’mice and men…”

8/18/2024

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Oh, we had SUCH plans for this past week, and BOY, did they “gang aft agley…”

Remember the juvie eagle that went to CNC for flight conditioning and live prey testing? Well, she (yeah, the general consensus now is that she’s female) did great at CNC and it was time for her release last week. DNR wanted to release her in Laurens County and had located what appeared to be a great area where eagles had been documented, so we knew it would provide support (i.e., have food and roosting areas) for her.

So Monday my niece and I met DNR head biologist Bob Sargent and his assistants at the designated release site. All looked good; the eagle was restless in her crate; and dang, it was HOT… We quickly worked out a game plan and then the crate was set on the ground and opened…and she sat there, talons latched in the door. Bob pried her talons loose, and she more or less braced her feet and legs against the inside of the crate. This really should have been our clue this wasn’t gonna end well, but noooo, we’ve all seen reluctant releasees before, so we chalked it up to that.

Sure enough, within ten minutes or so, after Bob encouraged her to get out of the crate, she decided to show off her flight skills. It was glorious…until it wasn’t…

She took off, circled back behind us, and landed in a bush mere inches above the water, where she sat until Bob tried to snag her again, as this wasn’t going well. She THEN decided to go for a swim…It took nearly 45 minutes for her to get close enough to shore for Bob to wade in and net her; meanwhile, we had two people searching the nearby residences for someone who might have a boat we could borrow…

Since she was now waterlogged, stressed and angry, we decided to wait a couple of days and try again. Meanwhile, Bob and I agreed it would be less stress on “Swimmer,” as we were now calling her, if she just hung out at LWR in the interim rather than making the three-hour trip back to CNC. Since she and “Wing-wrap” are both juvies, there should be no territorial issues.

Well, at least THAT went well. Both birds sorta huffed and postured a bit but then decided having a fellow “inmate” wasn’t so bad.

A couple of days later, having located an alternate release site near the original site, we tried again. This was to be a release from private property, and the landowners were thrilled to be of assistance. When we got ready for release, we warned them it might not be a sight to write home about. Thinking that maybe the crate had upset her last time, we tried using my old standby of a cardboard box this time. Initially it looked promising: she gathered herself, launched to the side of the box, perched for a second, and took off…right back into the drink…

This time, though, we were near a dock on the landowners’ property, and Swimmer was at least smart enough to head for the dock. Bob stretched out flat on the dock and netted her, and we discussed our options. Given her apparent lack of confidence in her flight skills, Bob said he’d check with FWS and seek permission to transfer her to the Center for Birds of Prey in Awendaw, SC. I suggested we also send Wing-wrap, as he needs extended rehab and possibly placement as an ed bird.

Bob agreed, and by the end of the day FWS had granted permission for both birds to be transferred to Awendaw as soon as practicable. Since they were still recovering from the aftermath of Debby and the resultant influx of birds, a tentative date of the last week of August was set for the transfer, and FWS granted me authorization to keep both birds until they can be transferred.

Meanwhile, both the juvie and second-year red tails are doing great and just hanging out, awaiting their turns in the main flight once the eagles have been transferred.

There will be no update next Sunday, August 25.

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Goal met—and surpassed!

8/11/2024

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Thanks to generous supporters, LWR’s $1500 fundraising goal was surpassed, garnering a total of $2025—in two weeks! That means y’all don’t have to put up with my yammering about fundraising for an entire month, as I’d said the fundraiser would run for a month or until the goal was met. Thank all of y’all who donated; the birds (and I) appreciate the “mouse (and quail) money!”

The juvie bald eagle went back in last week to have his wing unwrapped and get new x-rays to see if there was any healing occurring. Sadly, we saw no healing, which means this bird will likely be an ed bird, as right now his prospects for release look slim. FWS has approved me holding him for another 30 days while we see how things pan out and possibly begin the process of placement.

Rads from July 10

Rads from August 8

He’s young, he’s trainable, and he’s actually got a pretty decent temperament, so I’m confident he’ll do well as an ed bird, but the process isn’t as easy as with other raptors. After a letter from the vets at Smalley’s certifying that he’s nonreleasable—the standard procedure for any raptor—he then must be offered to American Indian tribes as a program bird; if no tribe opts to “adopt” him, then he can be offered to other facilities. FWS has a couple in mind already, so placement shouldn’t be an issue.

And let me stop right here and state for the record that the folks at FWS and DNR, as well as my colleagues in wildlife rehab and my vets, who’ve worked hard with me on these two eagles, are top-notch. Without their support and, in the case of the state and feds, approval, I couldn’t have worked with these birds long-term, and they’ve all been highly responsive throughout this entire process. They’re good people to have in your corner, and I appreciate their trust in me. Having the privilege of working with these two juvie eagles has vastly improved my opinion of the species as a whole.

He was NOT impressed with the rain we received from Debby.

By that evening he'd decided under the blind and out of the rain was a better location!

The second-year red tail sulked for several days after his abortive release attempt, facing the corner of his box with his back to me and refusing to eat. Didn’t take long for hunger to win out over temper tantrum, though, and he started eating again.

The sole new intake last week came in yesterday afternoon, a severely emaciated great horned owl from a coastal county that had been badly impacted by Hurricane Debby. Given that he was alert and aggressive on intake, it really seemed that the couple who found him had rescued him in time, but this wasn’t the case. Despite small, frequent meals, he died overnight.

And everybody’s favorite juvie red tail is starting to attempt adult calls every now and then. It’s strangled and cuts off abruptly, but hey, he’s trying! He definitely takes the prize for most photogenic, too!

Thank y’all again for helping LWR surpass our fundraising goal!

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Releases and fundraiser update

8/4/2024

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Beginning with the fundraiser, most of y’all know by now that the link in last week’s update is basically useless because PetFundr/Fundrazr’s “new and improved” platform is lovely until you actually attempt to donate, at which point it declines the transaction. A week of increasingly less polite communications with them has failed to resolve this issue, so while the fundraiser is ongoing, it will be through PayPal directly (link to the side of this page), or mailed checks. As of today, we’ve raised $525 of the $1500 goal—just $975 to go! Thanks to all who’ve donated, and I apologize for the problems with the online platform. I’ll be exploring other options before the next fundraiser.

On to releases: we had three releases last week, only one of which I managed to get a decent video of. I would’ve preferred to give the barnie extended time in a flight, but she needed to go, so she was release #1. Instead of flying down the open footpath where I released her, she opted to go sideways into the woods and get tangled in branches before landing on the ground. The good news is that when I laid down the camera and grabbed my gloves and net, she had gotten her bearings and disappeared before I could turn around.

The broadie took off before I could even hit “record” and disappeared into the brush. The Mississippi kite’s (MIKI) release video would have been gorgeous had the camera focused on the bird instead of the surrounding trees. There was this small out-of-focus blurred blob flying away…Fortunately, I did see where he landed and was able to get one photo before he took off again, so there’s that.

A second MIKI came in early last week; the finders had kept a juvenile bird for FOUR DAYS with no food. The result was a severe case of wryneck, or stargazing. As y’all know from previous experience, sometimes this can be addressed with proper nutrition, and the bird recovers fully. This poor fellow did not; his stargazing got progressively worse throughout the week. He was humanely euthanized.

A man from a neighboring county witnessed a barred owl being hit by a car and stopped to pick it up. Sadly, upon arrival at LWR, the bird was found to have an open wrist fracture. He also was humanely euthanized.

We attempted a release for the second-year red tail, but he bolted from the box and sat on the ground, wings flared, but made no attempt to fly. He’s back in a box at LWR.

The juvie red tail alternates between majestic bird and goofy juvie, which makes every trip to the mini-pen for feeding interesting. I never know whether I’m gonna see a bird worthy of a sculpture or a clown…

And we hope to have the eagle sorted within the week. The current plan is to get him back to Smalley’s to unwrap his wing for follow-up x-rays and see where things stand, and then get him transferred to CNC ASAP. Everything right now hinges on our weather; we’re under a tropical storm watch for Monday and Tuesday, so our “best-laid plans” might “gang aft agley” this week!

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It’s that time again…

7/28/2024

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Time for a fundraiser, I mean. Given the state of the economy, I delayed announcing a fundraiser as long as possible, but caring for two eagles long-term, back to back, has put a sizeable dent in the LWR budget. No raptor food is inexpensive, and feeding eagles especially ain’t cheap: a bag of extra-large mice lasts about two weeks; a bag of large quail won’t even feed him for one week. And he gets both mice and quail daily. The fundraiser will run for the usual 30 days or until the goal of $1500 is met—if we meet the goal early, the campaign ends early. (There’s y’all some incentive: meet the goal early and shut me up about funds and goals!) Just click on the embedded link below to donate. Thank y’all for your support!

As for the eagle, he continues to do well; we won’t know if the wing is going to heal for flight or even heal without that droop until the wrap is removed. Colleague Kathryn Dudeck and I have discussed whether to get follow-up x-rays and unwrap/re-wrap the wing prior to transfer to CNC, which may be soon; she reports the previous eagle caught his first live prey last week!

The only new intake was a juvie turkey vulture who’d been dog-attacked and suffered open fractures on both wings. He was humanely euthanized.

The second-year red tail is ready to go but we had a week of rain, with this week slated to be a repeat. While I hate the rain delays for the birds, we need the rain, so I can’t complain.

The broadie is starting to get antsy and has banged up his head a bit, so he may end up getting released this week, rain notwithstanding.

The MIKI loves to announce his imminent starvation, “pip-pewing” nonstop until his food bowl is full of mouse tidbits…

The barnie also really needs release ASAP, but she needs at least a few days in a flight first.

And the juvie red tail remains full of personality. I did manage a couple of slightly better photos of him mantling.

Don’t forget the fundraiser, and thanks in advance for any and all donations! Fundrazr has subdivided now, so this one is through PetFundr and ConnectionPoint. We’ve gone ‘round and ‘round about LWR’s account (which, contrary to their assertions otherwise, did NOT transfer seamlessly to PetFundr), the current campaign, etc., so I’ll be looking for a new fundraising platform for next time; meanwhile, we’ll all have to muddle through with this one…

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Pretty typical week at LWR

7/21/2024

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The eagle is being really good (knock on wood) about tolerating his wing wrap. Honestly, these two juvie eagles have immeasurably improved my opinion of eagles…the juvies, at least. Being so young, they haven’t had time to become quite so…ummm…eagle-like (ill-tempered, aggressive, unpredictable), and so they’ve actually been a bit endearing.

Thanks to colleague Kathryn Dudeck for identifying last week’s “not red shoulder” as a juvie broadwing hawk. I so seldom see broadies that I just don’t recognize them; in fact, the last broadie at LWR was about 10 years ago, and I had to call on Kathryn and Steve for identification on that one, as well.

Since I had broadies on the brain, this week’s only new intake looked slightly broadie-ish to me until he opened his beak and that definitive black tongue identified him as a juvie Mississippi kite (MIKI). And then he let loose with the signature MIKI “pip-pew” call…He refused to eat for two days, until I put his food in a dish; then he went to town on it. They can be strange little birds.

The second-year red tail continues to heal from his coracoid fracture and should be ready to flight-test in a week or so; if he can fly well at that point, he’s good for release.

The juvie red tail is getting quite food aggressive, and I did manage a couple of not-great shots of him mantling over his food. To hear him tell it, he’s starving to death. Hah! Not likely on a diet of 6 large mice a day!

And the poor barnie desperately needs to be in a pen for flight conditioning and live prey testing before release, but both flights remain occupied. The anticipated transfer of the juvie red tail to colleague Steve Hicks, which would’ve freed up a flight for the barnie, has suffered weather delays: it’s been too hot and dry or too humid and rainy (or that lovely trifecta of too hot, humid, and rainy), so he hasn’t been able to properly prep a flight pen for the bird. We’re hoping maybe this week; we shall see…The barnie certainly hopes so, I’m sure!

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Mid-July already?

7/14/2024

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Mid-July means baby season is beginning to wind down—but we still have to get through August!

This month also marks the overlap between late red shoulder nests and Mississippi kite (MIKI) nests, so when LWR received a call about a small hawk who was grounded in a less-than-safe location, it took actually seeing the bird to determine whether we had a MIKI or a red shoulder…and while I’m sure it’s not a MIKI, its silence makes me question my identification of the bird as a brancher red shoulder. I mean, red shoulders are notoriously mouthy and this fellow hasn’t uttered a peep…but he definitely knows how to eat!

As colleague Steve Hicks is fond of saying, we know his last name is Hawk; we’re just not sure about his first name yet.

The eagle went to Smalley’s for follow-up x-rays and for vet Peggy Hobby to wrap his wing to see if maybe it will heal with no lasting droop. We’re not sure. There’s clearly a fracture that shows no signs of healing after app. 3 weeks (the bird was admitted to UGA’s wildlife clinic on June 21 and came to LWR on July 4), but now the debate is whether it’s actually the furcula (clavicle) or scapula (shoulder blade) that’s broken. The fracture looks the same in UGA’s and Smalley’s x-rays, taken nearly 3 weeks apart, and an avian vet used by CNC has said both sets of rads are inconclusive. He could also have nerve or tendon damage that would prevent healing for flight. At any rate, he’s tolerating the wrap quite well, mainly, I suspect, because it relieves the pressure of that hanging wing. Now we wait and see…

While I was at Smalley’s with the eagle, an injured barred owl was brought in. X-rays showed a fractured ulna, which had knocked the radius out of joint. Given that the damage was quite literally right at the elbow joint, Peggy and I agreed the chance of the fracture healing for flight was nonexistent and that euthanasia was the kindest option.

After finding a couple of feathers in the sharpie’s box, I decided he needed release ASAP to avoid feather picking or other damage that would keep him in rehab longer than necessary. Sharpies are accipiters, which means they’re high-strung, stressy little raptors and release as soon as practical is best for them. He shot out of the box before I could hit record and disappeared straight into the thick woods, so I’d say he was quite ready to skedaddle!

The barnie needs to be flight conditioned so she can leave, as well.

The juvie red tail remains in the mini-pen and can locate his food no matter where it’s hidden—precursor to passing a live prey test. He’s also started mantling over his food: turning his back to me and defensively spreading his wings over his food. I tried all last week to snag a photo of that, with no luck. Maybe this week…