Here is the video my friend Adrianne made of my red-tailed hawk release. I was nervous…can you tell? I don’t think my public speaking skills are up to par. However, big kudos to Jodeane (director of the MRP) for being there and helping me out when I needed it (and for giving me this awesome opportunity in the first place).
It’s a bit long – just about 10 minutes – and the best part (the actual release of the bird) happens between 8 and 9 minutes.
Thanks to everyone who voted for my blog in the Birdchick’s Birdorable Blog Contest — I won!
Please stay tuned for an updated entry on the great horned owl release on May 11, plus a new entry about my very first raptor release which happened on May 16. I fell a bit behind due to some of my other projects, but I hope to have For the Birds. back up and running.
In the meantime, here is a photo to tide you over…
This is me, having a little chat with the red-tailed hawk I'm about to release. Photo by Julie Staub.
Part I – The release.
Monday evening before my rehab session at the MRP, I had the privilege of witnessing the “armpit biter” great horned owl (GHOW) being released back into the wild. This particular GHOW had been with us for several months, so I’m sure she was ready to get back to her wild home.
The release took place at the Iowa City home of the woman who found her and reported her injury to MRP staff. The plan was to release the owl in her backyard, but when we arrived on site we knew it wasn’t the best place to let her go because…
…this family of ducks was swimming around in the pond, and none of us wanted to see one of the ducklings become the owl’s dinner.
To avoid a confrontation with the ducks, we ended up taking the owl about a block away where Nikki, one of the other rehabbers, placed her in a pine tree. Though I AM going to miss working with her, hopefully we will not see her again and she will thrive among the other wild creatures. Here she is in her pine tree:
I’m quite sure this was the most exciting thing to ever happen in this neighborhood.
View my Flickr set for all the photos from the release.
Part II – A misty-eyed rehab.
Monday was my final rehab session with the red tailed hawk (RTHA) in the flight cage. The director of the MRP called me on Friday to see if I would be interested in coordinating his release, and of course I was all over it.
His flying had improved so much in the last couple of weeks. He had excellent speed and control, and to watch him glide to his perch is like watching a dream. He was obviously ready to go. I just kept watching him fly back and forth above me, and relished one of the last chances I would have to enjoy sharing such a small corner of the world with such a fantastic bird.
Watching him, I couldn’t help but feel a little bit like a parent whose child was graduating from college. But I think this is much, much cooler.
Here he is, mere days away from being sent back into the wild.
And so, being the huge dork that I am, I let my eyes tear up a little bit. I was so proud of the bird, but also proud of myself for accomplishing what I have so far.
The release took place on Saturday, May 16th at 10am at the Macbride Raptor Project.
I will miss working with this hawk, but he needs to be free. And I am looking forward to giving him that freedom.
I made a little video during my rehabilitation session with the red tailed hawk on May 4, 2009.
A little video I made during my rehab session with the great horned owl (AKA Armpit Biter) on May 4, 2009.
Last night was perhaps the best rehab session I’ve had so far in my volunteer-career as a wildlife rehabilitator. I hadn’t rehabbed in the two weeks prior to tonight, and it felt great to get back in the flight cage and see how my feathered friends are doing. Last Monday, I didn’t go out to the raptor center because I didn’t feel well and the week before I didn’t fly either bird because they both had additional injuries that were separate from their “regular” injuries (i.e. the injuries for which they are in the flight cage in the first place). I didn’t want to agitate anything further so I let them be. It looks like letting them rest was a good idea because they both were in fine form tonight.
I began with the red tailed hawk, who I fully expected to be as much of a pain in the butt as he was last time I flew him. If you will recall, I spent nearly an hour chasing him along the floor of the flight cage to no avail at all – he barely flew for me, so I put him back without completing his regimen of five perch-to-perches. Tonight was completely different. After catching him (which was the hardest part of the whole ordeal), he proceeded to give me his five perch-to-perch (P-P) flights plus an additional two P-Ps. I felt like he and I were perfectly in sync and that he understood exactly what I wanted him to do. He didn’t struggle while being held, and he didn’t put up a fight once I had caught him and was holding him. His flying mechanics have improved greatly since the last time I worked with him, and he demonstrated a vast improvement in his landings. I tried to offer him positive feedback and cheer him on while he was going through his exercises, which in my mind makes all the difference. I completed his exercises in about 30 minutes, I think, and got him back in his cage safely and soundly.
The armpit biter great horned owl was up next. Once he came down from his high perch on the wall, I caught him easily only to be bitten very hard on the left arm. It left a tiny but very painful welt. But, since I’m used to the sharp sting of his beak at this point, I got right to his wing stretches and then launched him into the air from the middle of the flight cage. His flight had improved tremendously since our last session, as well. His height, speed, glides, and landings were all those of a bird who was well on his way to being released back into the wild. After being a resident of the MRP since early winter, I’m sure he is eager to get back to the woods and tell all his friends about the mean girl who made him fly back and forth inside a big cage.
I was so thrilled after the rehab session that I literally jumped up and down afterward. I was happy with the birds’ performances, but was also happy with myself for being what I felt was a very observant and patient rehabber. I did not allow them to intimidate me, which I do sometimes because, well, they are large wild birds who are not happy about their current living situation and the fact that people in big leather gloves come into their space, corner them, grab them by the legs, and make them do flying exercises.
Sometimes it’s also easy to forget that there is a barrier between myself and these birds, and that barrier is called WILDNESS. These birds, no matter now much I talk to them or anthropomorphosize them, are wild animals. They want nothing to do with me. When I’m holding them and looking into their eyes (from a mere six inches away) thinking about how amazing it is to be thisclose to a wild great horned owl, they are thinking, “I’d kill you right now if I could.”
It doesn’t bother me. I signed up for this so I can’t complain about the bites or the birds’ blatant animosity toward my presence in their immediate space. I am helping them, whether they know it (or like it) or not. And tonight, I felt like the three of us - me, the hawk, and the owl – were all on the same page. We danced. I led.
They’ll thank me in the end.
I made two videos from today’s session, but will post them in separate entries from my Flickr account.
Today’s photos:
My rehab accountrements: leather falconer gloves, rehab notebook, trusty pencil.
The new kid: a Cooper's hawk was brought to the flight cage this week. He is under observation only for right now.
I drove out to the raptor center tonight, mentally prepared to deal with a difficult red-tailed hawk and bitey great horned owl. It was half stormy and half bright and sunshiney, so it was kind of like my mood – happy at getting to work with the birds, but less than thrilled about going out during the first of what will be many spring storms.
I got into the flight cage and tried to catch the owl first, since he did so well last time and I was able to finish with him quickly. He retreated to the very top of his cage, clinging to the wood slats, and dare I say he seemed to be relishing the fact that I couldn’t reach him. I left him for the time being and moved on to the red-tail.
As the red-tail sat on his perch and spread his wings in an aggressive stance, and I noticed that his 7th or 8th primary feather was loose and dangling from the other feathers. I approached him, holding up my hands like I was going to catch him, so he would open his wings again and I could get a better look. Sure enough, something was amiss. See the diagram:
bird wing diagram
I could see a very small amount of blood on the light-colored feathers, so I decided not to fly the hawk. I don’t know if that is normal (the feather loss), but I didn’t want to take the chance of causing further injury. I did bring my camera with me this time, and took a photo to share:
Notice the slightly askew feathers on the left wing.
I moved on to the owl after this. It had started raining at this point, and the owl was still enjoying the fact that he was just enough out of my reach that I couldn’t catch him. I went to the dry side of the cage and waited for him to come down, which he did after a few minutes. I reached up and grabbed him from his perch, and gave him a once-over.
The previous rehabber had written in the log book that the owl had fresh blood on its wing on Friday, and I noticed the very same thing today. From what I could tell, the wrist on the right wing (which was NOT the wing which was originally injured) had been scratched and was slightly bloody. See the diagram below:
The owl had an apparent injury to the RADIALE on his right wing.
I did ten wing stretches with the owl, who glared at me the whole time and tried to bite my hand, armpit, and chest. Once again, I did not want to fly the owl and further agitate this injury so I placed him back in his cage and called it a day.
Here he is, looking fierce and bitey:
Ready to bite whatever gets in his way!
Hopefully next week I will have more exciting things to report. Until then….
The day began at 9am. It was sunny and a bit cool but when I started cleaning out Spirit (the bald eagle)’s cage, I got warm real quick. I raked the debris from the gravel, scraped old poop from the walls, and removed mouse/pig/quail/etc. guts, and I swiped a couple of gross little “presents” for my friend Paula, whose birthday was this weekend. When the crew came in with the power washers, I then repeated the process in two or three other cages, none of which were (thankfully) as gross as the eagle’s.
After that I helped clean and spread mulch in the butterfly garden, which was interesting because I hardly ever go over there. Not once in my visits have I ever seen a butterfly in or around the butterfly garden. But now, since I am always one to take pride in my work, I might have to pay that place a visit and admire the finely spread mulch and leaf-less trail.
While in the butterfly garden, I helped some of the environmental education teachers (who were helping us make the MRp sparking clean) re-build the log structure for the butterflies to hide in. We must have disturbed a nest of baby mice, as we found one crawling along one of the logs and one scrambling along the ground. They were incredibly tiny – they were soft gray in color and their eyes weren’t even open yet. When I held the little fella in my hand, he began squeaking teeny tiny little squeaks that broke my heart. We surveyed the area and didn’t see any others, so I picked up the one on the ground and placed him near the other mouse. One of the teachers gathered some pine needles and dry grass and tried to make a little protective nest for the mice inside the log structure. I hope neither of them become dinner for a hungry raptor…but in a place like that, where mice are featured nightly on the menu, it’s hard to be optimistic. At least I had a hand in helping them be safe for the day.
Lunchtime came and went all to quickly, and after that I got back to work mulching, hammering, hanging signs, and replacing the Astroturf on some of the owls’ perches. I learned a valuable lesson about poultry nails, and that lesson is that poulty nails are good for two things: frustration and injuries. I hope to never encounter another poultry nail as long as I live.
I ended up saying long after most of the other volunteers had left and I had one objective: to put Petra back in her cage. I only mentioned it about 10 times during the day to anyone who might have delegation powers when it came to putting all the birds back once the cages were clean, but I hung around by her little box to make sure nobody else jumped at the chance. After putting Otus, the long-eared owl, and the armpit biter great horned owl from the flight cage back to their respective homes, I got Petra leashed up and she rode so sweetly on my hand back to her cage like the wonderful little darling that she is. This year, I had the presence of mind to have someone snap a photo:
So much love!: Petra (Northern Saw-whet owl) and me
I ended up leaving the MRP around 5pm, which means I put in a good solid 8 hours of manual labor. Like I said, though, despite all the hard work I had a really good time. I did a lot more this year than I did last year and talked to a lot of different people who I hadn’t talked to before, including a woman who is writing a book on owl rehabilitators. I gave her my email address and hopefully she will contact me to be part of her project. After pizza and a glass of wine when I got home, I was dead to the world. I fell asleep on the sofa, and dreamed little feathered owl dreams.
Today marked the official start of my weekly duties as wildlife rehabilitator at the Macbride Raptor Project. This has been a goal of mine for over three years, and it feels good to have put in the work, training, and dedication needed to pursue my dream. Now, every Monday, I will put myself and my tender flesh up against wild and most likely angry raptors.
juvenile red tailed hawk
I worked with two birds today: a juvenile red-tailed hawk and a great horned owl. I began with the red tail, because I thought he would be easier. I’ve worked with the owl before, and he is surly, bitey, and stubborn. The red tail actually proved to be more of a challenge than I originally suspected. He was easier to catch than I thought he would be, but once I got him into the flying area he made it quite clear that he was unwilling to do any actual flying.
At one point, he resorted to laying down on his back (a stance they take when trying to foot their prey / opponent) and trying to foot me. He succeeded in grabbing my glove but missed my actual hand. He clung to the glove and wouldn’t let go, no matter what I did. I left him laying there – on his back – for literally five minutes, glove in talon. I sat on the bench, waiting for him to boost himself back up but he stayed put. Finally I got up, calmed him down a bit by covering his face with my other (gloved) hand, removed the glove from his sharp talons, and got him back up and flying.
Well, not really flying. He would not move. He sat on the perch, seemingly enjoying the chest and belly rubs I had started to administer. After an hour or so of clapping my hands at him, pleading with him, giving him positive encouragement and space, I scooped him up and put him back in his cage. Next time you will fly, friend. Next time you will fly.
great horned owl
The great horned owl was a pleasant surprise. Like I said, I’d worked with him before and had found him to be a most unpleasant and cantankerous wild animal. Since I’d had issues with him in the past, I was prepared for battle. Thankfully, he was in a good (?) mood. He was slightly less bitey today than in the past (he’s the armpit biter, for those of you who saw the bruises) and was definitely much more willing to fly like he was supposed to. Rehabbing him only took about 30 minutes, but he did manage to bite my arm really hard at the end and leave a bruised welt – through two layers.
Bites, pinches, and scratches are the price I pay. I will always wear my wounds with pride. They make me who I am and come from the birds I love, even if they will never love me back.
FUN FACT: Juvenile red-tailed hawks can be identified by their yellow eyes and their lack of red tail feathers. As the birds age, their eyes begin to darken to a deep brown and their red tail feathers grow in.
On Sunday I rehabilitated a great horned owl out at the raptor center. It was a lot of fun, and I received my first “injury” from an owl – she managed to foot me (grab me with her foot) as I was trying to catch her. We catch the birds by first grabbing the legs, and then pinning the wings while holding the bird upside down and then lifting it to our chest once the wings are secure. Sometimes, the birds get angry (!) when you catch them, so they protect themselves however they can. This is usually by using their talons, which are razor-frickin’-sharp.
The funny thing is that she managed to perfectly encircle my owl tattoo, which is on the inside of my left forearm with her talons, thus leaving four perfect scratch marks from her four toes / talons. I was wearing two layers of shirt along with leather falconer gloves (which weren’t long enough, apparently) and the owl still left a mark! I can only imagine what would have happened if she had touched bare skin. I doubt I would even have a tattoo left.
(Three on top, one on the bottom right.)
I almost wish it had been a bit worse than just scratches – like Amanda pointed out, if the marks left a scar it would add meaning to the tattoo, which I got just a few days after I began rehabbing back in May. But I doubt these scratches will do anything but fade within a few days.
I’m sure my body will be graced with many more scratches, punctures, and bites as I work more with the birds, so I will proudly show off any battle wounds I receive. Until next time…
