While the end of baby season signals a welcome slowing of the frenetic pace of the past five months, a less pleasant reality is that it also signals the beginning of what I’ve started calling carnage season. This is when all the first year raptors begin coming in, starving and/or mortally injured, and migrating songbirds show up with life-ending injuries. It’s probably the most emotionally draining part of the year because so few can be salvaged, and this week was a good example of that.
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Beginning on a happier note, though, the adult great crested flycatcher that I thought had a coracoid fracture apparently was just bruised and sore from the cat attack. Mid-week, she was bouncing off the walls and escaping from her cage every chance she got, so she was released and was quite happy to bid LWR farewell. Not the greatest release video in the world, but she was ready to GO!

Sadly, the young male red-tail didn’t make it. While he continued to eat well and remained alert, he never stood up or perched again and died lying in the supportive doughnut. Was the frounce simply too advanced? Was it capillaria? Was there some other undiagnosed issue? We’ll never know. Necropsies are expensive and UGA doesn’t provide them gratis or even discounted for rehabbers, which is a constant source of frustration.
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Adding to the carnage, this gorgeous first-year female red-tail came in Monday night with a wing fracture. It didn’t look good, and an open wound at the elbow looked a bit suspicious, so she went to Smalley’s Animal Hospital for x-rays the next morning. Vet Jim Hobby and I were relieved that the wound wasn’t shooting-related but unhappy that the x-rays showed a shattered bone at the elbow and fractures of the radius and ulna. This large, aggressive, majestic lady was humanely and very regretfully euthanized.

​And then a barred owl came in with a left lower leg totally stripped of flesh and the left wing headed in that direction from a severe maggot infestation. It was impossible to even tell where the original wound had been on the wing, although nothing actually appeared broken, as it was nearly stripped bare of flesh, as well. There were no muscles, tendons or nerves left on the leg and the foot was already turning black, a sign that it was necrotic, or dead. Given the severity of the injuries, the most humane course of action was ending the bird’s suffering. The photos below were taken after euthanasia.

That very night, a caller reported another barred owl with an apparent broken wing, desperate enough for food to be eating moths and roaches under a street light. The next day she was brought to LWR, where an exam revealed a nasty right shoulder fracture. While the fracture wasn’t open, the wing rotated almost a full 360 degrees. While I was positive this was not a fixable fracture, I planned to get x-rays Monday to confirm, but the owl had other plans and died overnight.

And the finder/transporter asked a couple of questions I hear a lot, so let me address them here, as well. Could the owl be placed as an educational bird? Short answer, no. Longer answer: barred owls, like red-tailed hawks, are quite common and most nature/wildlife centers have a full complement of both species. 

Second question: if the owl couldn’t be “fixed”, could the finder come back to get it and keep it as a pet? This question—and you’d be surprised how often I hear it—always makes me wanna blurt out, “WHY?” Instead, I point out that it would be against state and federal laws, but really, legal issues aside, WHY would someone want to keep a wild bird--a bird of prey, at that—in captivity in their house or yard? For bragging rights? For neighborhood show and tell? Are you prepared to spend hundreds of dollars a year on the proper diet for that bird? Do you understand that chicken breasts, liver, beef hearts and so forth are NOT appropriate foods for birds of prey and will adversely affect their digestive process and possibly lead to overgrown beaks due to lack of bones to keep the beak worn down in some of those foods? Are you prepared to clean its cage daily? Do you understand that while this bird’s wings might not function properly, its beak and talons are in excellent working order and are dangerous—that it CAN and WILL bite and foot you, because it is WILD and sees you as a threat? Do you understand that those dangerous feet need a variety of perches to prevent bumblefoot? Do you understand that this is NOT a cuddly toy; it’s a living being and will need enrichment activities to prevent it from becoming bored and more aggressive?

And what happens when the novelty wears off or the bird foots or bites someone? You have a nonreleasable bird on your hands. You can’t just dump it at your local animal shelter; no nature/wildlife center will take it—see above. So what do you do now? Toss it in the woods and hope it wanders off before dying of starvation?
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Let me explain something here: it is unutterably cruel to keep a bird accustomed to free flight cramped in a dog crate or bird cage for the rest of its life because you claim to “love” that species. If you truly “love” that species, you’ll want what’s best for the bird, whether that be rehab for eventual release or humane euthanasia.  Count yourself lucky that you got to see your favorite species up close and personal and be proud that you got the bird to a licensed rehabber who could assess its condition and determine the most humane course of action for that bird. And take comfort in knowing that if euthanasia is necessary, you played a part in giving that bird the only release left for it—a humane and dignified death.

Rant over…for now…

On a more upbeat note, the mockers were released this past week, as was the mallard. No release shots of the mockers, as I just left the “escape hatch” on the songbird flight open and they were outside in the trees less than an hour later. The mallard, however, was a bit more cooperative, so we have video and photos of his release.

​The bluebirds and brown thrasher are seeing really noticeable feather growth on their wings now, and they’re beginning to flit a bit rather than scurry around on the ground. However, they’re also quite skittish, so these aren’t the clearest, best shots of their progress. Better’n nothing, though, right?

​I also attempted numerous shots of the remaining house finch, who thus far refuses to leave. He’s worse than the molting trio; this is all I managed. (You think the birds being rehabbed just sit nicely and pose for the camera? HAH! For every decent shot, there are dozens of these types of shots!)

​The mourning doves are attempting to self-feed a bit, so they should be in the songbird flight fairly quickly.

​The screech is almost done with his molt and since he’s already passed the live prey test, he’s good to go as soon as his head feathers come back in a bit more. Yeah, I know, I didn’t really need to keep him through the molt, but it’s damn hard for a rehabber to release a bird that looks scalped, no matter how healthy he really is!

​And as a bonus, when I released the mallard, my two-year nemesis (in terms of halfway decent photos or video), the Louisiana waterthrush, made a surprise appearance, and I managed a couple of video clips—one is a bit longish—and a few not-too-horrible photos of this elusive little bird. I absolutely adore that little tail-pumping action characteristic of the species!

​My main focus instead has been a juvenile red-tailed hawk, one of this year’s babies, who came in Friday thanks to a joint effort by volunteer transporters AJ Rogers and Laurie and Marshall Jackson. He wasn’t in great shape—emaciated, dehydrated, lethargic, bad case of frounce—so he had to be rehydrated before even offering food, which had to be small, frequent meals. And of course, we had to start treatment for frounce and I usually, as a precautionary measure, start treatment for capillaria, as well. He was perching on a low perch by sundown, which was a good sign. 

​Saturday, he continued to progress, even taking very small whole mice by that evening. This morning, however, after eating and being medicated, he slumped to the bottom of his box. When he made no attempt after an hour to get back on his perch, I replaced it with a “doughnut”, where he spent all day. Late in the afternoon he vomited up a foul-smelling brown sludge—no mouse bits in it at all—and seemed more alert afterwards but still made no attempt to stand or perch. He is still taking food, though, so we’ll just have to continue to play it by ear with him and keep our fingers crossed.

​This adult great-crested flycatcher was also a transfer from Libby, who did alert me to his back-story. He was cat-attacked and while neither wing is broken, he cannot gain any altitude when he attempts to fly. This is typical with a coracoid fracture—similar to a collarbone fracture in humans. Sometimes these fractures heal to allow flight; sometimes not. We’ll just have to give him time. He is eagerly self-feeding, which these types of birds don’t always do in rehab when they’re adults, so he’s at least got that going for him!

​When callers said they’d picked up a dove from the side of the road and could “see meat” it didn’t sound promising. When they arrived with the bird, her poor throat was ripped open and her breast feathers stripped away. They asked if she’d been hit by a car but this looked to me more like a young and inexperienced hawk had been spooked by traffic before he finished his meal. It’s that time of year. There was nothing to be done for this poor dove but end her suffering. The photo below, which is quite graphic, was taken after euthanasia.

​The mallard continues to grow apace and has about another two weeks, maybe slightly less, before he’s good for release.  Managed a really good close-up of those adorable duck feet this week!

​The screech is about halfway through his molt; the feathers at the front of his head are growing back in nicely, so he doesn’t look so scalped now!

In the songbird flight, one house finch has been released; the other is getting close. The three mockers are almost ready for release, and the brown thrasher and bluebirds whose flight feathers were damaged waaay back at the end of May—remember them?—are FINALLY going through a juvenal molt and I’m starting to see some feather regrowth! Nobody in the flight is overly fond of the camera, so no decent shots of them this week; will keep trying for next week.
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And while we did surpass our goal on the fundraiser, I’m keeping it active till the end of the month, as originally scheduled, in case anyone wants to make a last-minute donation.

​As of mid-week, LWR had received $2715 in donations, slightly over the original goal of $2500. Heartfelt thanks to the 25 generous donors! Since the campaign was slated to run through the end of August, I’ll leave it active for those of you who might be waiting on that long-overdue inheritance or expecting to win the lottery any day now…

Baby season continues to wind down slowly. LWR received two fledgling mockers and two fledgling house finches last week.  All four are in the flight pen, and the finches should be releasable next week. The mockers are a little younger and will be around a bit longer. No photos of any of the four little rascals because they were totally uncooperative whenever I had the camera in the flight pen last week.
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Both the red-headed and red-bellied woodpeckers were released and are still coming down for handouts; however, it’s difficult to get photos of them, as well, as the crow likes to swoop in, demanding HIS handout, as I’m feeding them. This means both hands are occupied feeding, because I don’t want him harassing them, which crows are prone to do to smaller birds. I did manage this shot of the red-head, though, such as it is.

​We had two more barred owls come in, with the same mixed results as last week. The one who came in earlier in the week was lucky to have only a concussion and was released later in the week.

​The one who came in later in the week had an open wing fracture and the bone had already turned black.  Open wing fractures in themselves are pretty much a death sentence; when the bone is already black, it means those exposed ends have died. There was nothing to do for the poor owl other than make sure he didn’t suffer any longer.

​This red-shouldered hawk—a normally colored one!—came in with a concussion and possible soft tissue damage that thus far has left him flightless. Given his reluctance to eat in captivity, this is not a good situation, but we’ll keep working on both flight and appetite.

​When the caller said she had a young sparrow hawk, even though I knew it was past time for baby kestrels, I started thinking, Maybe the first nest was destroyed and this is a late nest—who knows? Fact is, I see so few kestrels I was thrilled at the thought of getting one in, so I have to admit to some slight disappointment when I opened the box and found a brancher Mississippi kite. I do love kites, as well, but my heart was kinda set on that kestrel…

Since Steve Hicks of Bubba & Friends already had a kite that I’d transferred to him earlier, this guy went to him as well. He’s more in their migration path than I am, and this will save them precious energy when they join the migration next month.
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Of course, as is typical for most weeks in a rehabber’s life, last week was a mixture of “release highs” and “euthanasia lows”. In addition to the open-fracture barred owl, LWR received an adult Canada goose who was described as limping around a parking lot biting at his own foot—and with good reason, as it quickly became obvious on intake. Most of his foot was missing and a good half-inch of the bone exposed. There was only one humane option for this poor goose. The foot photo was taken after euthanasia.

​And this young turkey vulture was found by the road unable to stand or use his legs at all. The finder wondered why he could still use his wings if he had spinal damage, and the answer is that just like humans, paralysis from spinal damage can occur at various points for birds.  In his case, it was the equivalent of paralysis below the waist in a human. He, too, was euthanized.

When the caller said she had a hummer that had been caught on flypaper, I cringed.  Flypaper, glue traps, etc., all too often trap more than their intended victims, and usually with deadly results.  This poor little ruby-throat is missing all the feathers on his chest and belly and most of his tail feathers. His wings are frayed.  His legs are swollen and irritated and his feet are so balled and covered with goo that he can’t even perch. In short, I’m honestly not sure what his chances are. I did manage to remove most of the goo on his feet but it hasn’t helped a whole lot. Still, he is managing to get to the feeder in his cage and eat, so I’m willing to keep cleaning and give him time to see what happens, but he faces a time crunch as far as regrowing those feathers, with migration looming.
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Don’t use flypaper or glue traps or snap-traps outdoors where birds can also be victims. Just don’t.

The barred owl recovering from the wing fracture continues to do well. No photos this week ‘cause, well, he just perches there in his box and eats—not a lot to take pictures of!
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The mallard is growing like a weed and remains paranoid about the camera. He managed to knock the stopper loose in the tub last week and all the water drained out, so I took advantage to get a shot of those legs and feet. I love duck feet!

​And the screech’s ungainly molt continues, poor ragged-looking little fellow…

​Bonus shots: this gray squirrel, not one of my rehabs, was checking out the bird feeder earlier today.

​There may be late baby songbirds still to come, and there will be injured/ill migrating adults, but now we’ve moved more into the raptors phase of the year.
 
Of course, the fundraiser is ongoing; we’ve stalled at $1840, with no new contributions since August 4. We have just $660 to go to meet our goal, so if you’ve been waiting for whatever reason, now’s the time to donate. Look at it this way: the sooner the goal’s meet, the sooner you get a break from my constant harping on it!

And I’m sure you’ve all been waiting with bated breath to hear the outcome on the leucistic red shoulder…so I think I’ll hold off reporting on him until we get a few more donations…
 
Nah, just kidding. I wouldn’t be that cruel…yet…
 
Mr. Leucistic did have an old, healed wing fracture but it was NOT the source of the problems that landed him at LWR. As best we can figure, he got sideswiped by a vehicle and, amazingly, escaped with only a nasty concussion and a bit of bruising that caused the swelling under his wing.  Vet Richie Hatcher at Smalley’s Animal Hospital said since both eyes were clear and pupils not dilated, he was cleared for the raptor flight immediately.
 
This meant moving the screech back in for a few days—he was NOT a happy camper.
 
Mr. Leucistic, on the other hand, was dee-lighted to have space to spread his wings and within a couple of days was flying like he’d never been grounded. When he flew the length of the raptor flight and back four times above my head, I was ecstatic to call his finders and report that he was good to go home—and got an interesting bit of news. It seems he was older than the finders initially thought; another hawk-watcher reported seeing this guy for the past six years—yeah, SIX years!!!
 
Volunteer AJ Rogers took Mr. Leucistic back to his home territory and reported that he shot out of the box like he’d been fired from a cannon—she said she barely got it open good before he was out and gone. THAT is the kind of release we like!
 
Below are photos and a short video shot prior to his release.

​With Mr. Leucistic released, the screech went back into the raptor flight, not without a bit of stink-eye for the inconvenience…

Two barred owls more or less bookended the week, with very different outcomes.
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The first barred came in late in the day and looked pretty rough. I wasn’t sure he’d survive the night, but he did and subsequently made a visit to Smalley’s Animal Hospital, where vets Jim Hobby and Richie Hatcher examined him. He had a concussion, blood in one eye, which was swollen shut, and blood in the facial feathers near his ear but not the ear itself. His right wing was also broken but the nature of the fracture led us to believe confinement and limited movement for a few weeks should allow it to heal to allow flight.

​The second barred came in with his left wing basically hanging on by a tendon. It was a nasty, maggot-infested, massively infected open fracture—the type that makes me glad we have the means to euthanize on the spot and end the bird’s suffering.  There are times the only release we can offer is a humane death, and in this poor guy’s case, I was glad to offer him that release. The photo below was taken after euthanasia.

​Both the red-headed and red-bellied woodpeckers should be good for release later this week. They’re gorgeous specimens of their respective species!

​The mallard’s feathers are coming in beautifully, but he’s developing a severe, shrieking paranoia concerning the camera that makes it difficult to get really good photos, so I apologize  in advance for the somewhat soft images below.

​Of all the releases in the past couple of months, only the red-belly, crow and blue jay are still consistently coming down for handouts—and none of them actually NEED a blasted thing, as I know for a fact they’re quite capable of fending for themselves.  But it’s fun to watch the creative ways the two corvids find to express their “sincere” need for a handout…