Yeah, the big news is LWR received a juvenile bald eagle Thursday. Fourth eagle LWR has seen in 11 years: 2009, 2013, 2018 and 2020. And they’re a massive bureaucratic nightmare, in addition to having lousy personalities. Y’all get excited at the thought of an eagle; rehabbers get headaches.
This juvie was from Washington County. The nest had been under observation and the two sibs had branched about two weeks ago, so this guy wasn’t long out of the nest. A tornado in the wee hours Monday apparently grounded the bird; the nest was damaged but mostly intact, according to observers. The landowner had not been in the area after the tornado till Thursday, and when he saw the eagle grounded called GA DNR Eagle Program Coordinator Bob Sargent and area deer rehabbers John and Luanne Brooker, who often transport raptors to me. Based on the landowner’s description of the situation, Bob okayed capture, and John and Luanne got the bird to me within an hour of capture.
He arrived at LWR after Smalley’s had closed, so his vet visit would have to wait till Friday morning. His left thigh was a writhing mass of maggots and the underside of the right wing was discolored and it felt “crunchy.” I treated the thigh for maggots and started oral and topical antibiotics. He weighed about 6.5 lbs on intake—pretty definite confirmation that he was indeed male.
This juvie was from Washington County. The nest had been under observation and the two sibs had branched about two weeks ago, so this guy wasn’t long out of the nest. A tornado in the wee hours Monday apparently grounded the bird; the nest was damaged but mostly intact, according to observers. The landowner had not been in the area after the tornado till Thursday, and when he saw the eagle grounded called GA DNR Eagle Program Coordinator Bob Sargent and area deer rehabbers John and Luanne Brooker, who often transport raptors to me. Based on the landowner’s description of the situation, Bob okayed capture, and John and Luanne got the bird to me within an hour of capture.
He arrived at LWR after Smalley’s had closed, so his vet visit would have to wait till Friday morning. His left thigh was a writhing mass of maggots and the underside of the right wing was discolored and it felt “crunchy.” I treated the thigh for maggots and started oral and topical antibiotics. He weighed about 6.5 lbs on intake—pretty definite confirmation that he was indeed male.
This photo was about an hour after initial treatment for maggots. Believe me, you didn't want to see the "before" pic.
A vet exam and x-rays Friday at Smalley’s revealed a slightly displaced fracture of his right ulna that would heal best with a pin. Vet Peggy Hobby said his thigh treatment was appropriate; vet Jim Hobby stated he’d do the surgery if needed but would prefer a vet with more raptor surgical experience to handle it if possible. Luckily in this pandemic panic, Auburn’s Raptor Center was still taking birds, so we arranged transport to them on Saturday. When scheduled transporter Joy Daniels spiked with a fever early that morning, she contacted me so we could make alternate arrangements, and Scott and Tonya Gaillard stepped in at the last minute and transported the eagle to Auburn.
Thigh Friday, day after intake. Looking slightly better...
Thigh Sat. morning--definite improvement!
Scott said Auburn’s people told him we could follow the bird’s progress on their website; he’s intake #81. He’s not listed as of this afternoon but the link is https://w2.vetmed.auburn.edu/rm1/html/patientList.html . Their format is year-case number so you’ll be looking at the bottom of the list for 2020-081.
So now let me explain to y'all why raptor rehabbers cringe when eagles come in: Life as you know it comes to a screeching halt, because EVERYTHING revolves around the eagle from intake till transfer. I spent from app. 3:30pm Thursday to 3:30pm Saturday talking on the phone, texting, and emailing to get everything arranged to get the bird, alerting DNR and FWS that I had him, alerting my vets that I'd be in with him this morning, taking him in for the vet exam, talking to Auburn to make sure they'd take the bird during this pandemic panic, arranging transport to Auburn, letting everyone involved know transport was arranged, medicating and feeding the eagle, alerting all the proper authorities the eagle was en route to Auburn...and I still had over a dozen songbirds, a red tail, a possum, and six wood ducks to care for as well, with calls continuing and more birds coming in, in addition to my editing—you know, that little thing I do that actually pays the bills...
And yes, I was mentally and physically exhausted by the time the eagle left, but couldn’t relax until Scott and Tonya confirmed they’d made it to Auburn safely and had no problems delivering the bird. THEN I took 1000mg of Tylenol for my near-exploding head and crashed for half an hour, as that’s all the time I could spare between songbird feedings.
In slightly less stressful events at LWR this week, baby season has kicked in with a vengeance, with no less than 11 nestlings of varying species coming in throughout the week.
Monday an adult great horned owl with an open wing fracture and no neural response in either leg came in and was humanely euthanized.
So now let me explain to y'all why raptor rehabbers cringe when eagles come in: Life as you know it comes to a screeching halt, because EVERYTHING revolves around the eagle from intake till transfer. I spent from app. 3:30pm Thursday to 3:30pm Saturday talking on the phone, texting, and emailing to get everything arranged to get the bird, alerting DNR and FWS that I had him, alerting my vets that I'd be in with him this morning, taking him in for the vet exam, talking to Auburn to make sure they'd take the bird during this pandemic panic, arranging transport to Auburn, letting everyone involved know transport was arranged, medicating and feeding the eagle, alerting all the proper authorities the eagle was en route to Auburn...and I still had over a dozen songbirds, a red tail, a possum, and six wood ducks to care for as well, with calls continuing and more birds coming in, in addition to my editing—you know, that little thing I do that actually pays the bills...
And yes, I was mentally and physically exhausted by the time the eagle left, but couldn’t relax until Scott and Tonya confirmed they’d made it to Auburn safely and had no problems delivering the bird. THEN I took 1000mg of Tylenol for my near-exploding head and crashed for half an hour, as that’s all the time I could spare between songbird feedings.
In slightly less stressful events at LWR this week, baby season has kicked in with a vengeance, with no less than 11 nestlings of varying species coming in throughout the week.
Monday an adult great horned owl with an open wing fracture and no neural response in either leg came in and was humanely euthanized.
He was followed by five adorable blue-gray gnatcatcher nestlings who were days from fledging. After Sunday night/Monday morning’s storms, the property owners were surveying the damage and the wife walked over to a downed tree to see what the noise beneath it was. It was these babies, with a dead sib nearby. They’re doing great—fledged last night but will remain inside for a few days yet, till they start self-feeding.
NOTE: AT 10:33 PM APRIL 19, 2020, YOUTUBE INFORMED ME THAT THE ABOVE VIDEO OF BABY BIRDS, FOR GOD'S SAKE, HAD BEEN REMOVED BECAUSE IT VIOLATED THEIR "COMMUNITY STANDARDS." JUST SO YOU KNOW WHY IT'S MISSING. I'M LEAVING THE BROKEN LINK AS A TESTAMENT TO THEIR SHEER IDIOCY.
Then we had a house finch who fledged a bit too early when a snake raided his nest.
Wednesday a juvenile mourning dove with a broken wing came in and was placed with the cat-attacked dove who’s been an unhappy camper at LWR for a couple of weeks now.
Thursday’s intakes were a DOA adult male bluebird followed in short order by the eagle that led today’s update.
Friday saw a nestling brown thrasher, a cat-attack victim, and two what appeared to be phoebes, one of whom required euthanasia for a nest injury that resulted in his leg bones fusing into a backwards-facing position. The remaining phoebe has some poop issues—struggles to poop even though its cloaca is clean. I’m monitoring this situation. Yeah, we rehabbers know our shit…
Friday saw a nestling brown thrasher, a cat-attack victim, and two what appeared to be phoebes, one of whom required euthanasia for a nest injury that resulted in his leg bones fusing into a backwards-facing position. The remaining phoebe has some poop issues—struggles to poop even though its cloaca is clean. I’m monitoring this situation. Yeah, we rehabbers know our shit…
Saturday, what appears to be a nestling pine warbler with a broken leg arrived. The break is too high to splint so I’m keeping him positioned “just so” in his nest in hopes it’ll heal properly. There’s no nerve damage; he can flex his little toes when I lift him to change his nest paper, so that’s promising.
Also, a one-winged mourning dove came in and was euthanized, per FWS regulations—and just plain common sense. The wing had been ripped off at the shoulder; the bird couldn’t fly. The most humane option was euthanasia. The feds don’t arbitrarily make these rules; they take into account the health and wellbeing of the birds.
And another nestling brown thrasher came in Saturday, also a cat-attack victim. He’s louder and more insistent than Thrasher 1, so I can actually tell which of them is raising Cain.
Of course, we also have the red tail, waiting impatiently for a week with no bad weather forecasts to move into the raptor flight.
The sole survivor of the original four hatchlings from last Sunday’s update turned out to be a titmouse (we think) rather than a Carolina wren. When the feathers started coming in, it was obvious I’d misidentified the species. “Naked babies” are often difficult to pin down as to species!
The possum continues to grow and is now self-feeding. She’s already got her PhD in napping, as well…
The half dozen wood ducks are doing well and have mastered the art of “clump swimming” –see the video below!
Finally, we’re doing an early “soft” fundraiser using the PayPal links on the website again—see the graphic below. Tom and AJ Rogers made a rat run (they picked up a load of rodents for our raptors) for LWR and Bubba & Friends last week, and Tom came up with the concept. Both Steve Hicks of Bubba & Friends and I like the idea, so…LWR’s goal is $1000 for 1000 miles. That seems reasonable, right? And we have the first $100 donation already!
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