In late June, a beautiful Bald Eagle was spotted in the backyard of someone's private property near Warner Park in Madison, WI. The bird was young, all brown with a little bit of white mottling in her feathers, and the homeowners had a suspicion that she fledged from a nearby nest-site known to their neighbors. According to the finders, she could fly short distances but was unable to stay perched in a tree. She struggled to stand for more than a few moments and fell to the ground with every attempt she took to move upwards to safety.
Licensed rehabilitators at DCHS's Wildlife Center were called to action, but the initial contact came late at night after the facility was closed. Attempting to contain a Bald Eagle can be a dangerous task and is rarely recommended to members of the public because of increased risks to health and human safety. Luckily, one of our dedicated raptor caretaking volunteers (and local falconer), Dylan, was available to help the next morning. He safely captured the eagle and transported her to DCHS where she could then be examined for injuries or illness by our wildlife team.
X-rays confirmed that the eagle had suffered a pelvic fracture, potentially from falling from her nest or getting hit by a car. It would take two full months of strict cage rest, pain medications, and good nutrition for this bird to recover. Wildlife Program Manager Jackie Edmunds noted that this type of rehabilitation requires “multiple weeks of limited handling, cage cleaning, and patience to feed and care for them appropriately. It’s hard to know if the birds understand our objective to help them, because we need to keep injured birds restricted to a small space through rehabilitation. They won’t see a change to outdoor caging until they are medically cleared by our team… which can’t be easy for them to tolerate. Eagles are intelligent, complex, and spirited patients, but in all circumstances, they are incredibly fulfilling birds to rehabilitate.”
Senior Wildlife Rehabilitator Courtney Craighead also enjoyed working with the eagle, sharing, “She was always so vocal in care. One day, another staff member and I were in the Raptor Room getting ready to take [her] out for medication administration, and as we approached, she kept making little sounds (or little grunts). As a visceral reaction, I echoed the noise I was hearing and was surprised when the eagle actually responded! I had never experienced anything like that before. It was so cute and cool to hear, and it was definitely something I will never forget.”
The final few weeks of the eagle’s treatment included physical therapy (i.e., scheduled time to exercise her wings and legs: lift-off and flight time) to ensure that she had enough endurance to survive in the wild after release. She was the second eagle to successfully graduate from pre-release conditioning in our 100-foot Roger Werndli Memorial Solar Flight Pen – an enclosure that took over a decade of planning to build and now sustainably collects solar power from an array of panels on the roof to help offset energy costs at the Wildlife Center.
The bird was released to her original location near Warner Park after two long months of rehabilitation. In that time, the eagle made quite the impression on our wildlife team. Senior Wildlife Rehabilitator Geneva Kinzer shared, “Bald Eagles are always an honor to rehabilitate! ... They can be feisty and vocal, and this eagle was no exception – its grunting and snorting sounds were quite the welcome whenever you entered the room! Knowing how long of a stay this eagle had at our facility made its release an even bigger treat to witness.”
Geneva wasn’t the only one who had a memorable experience working with this bird; for Werndli Apprentice Jessica Robinson, this opportunity reinforced her desire to work in wildlife rehabilitation. She said, “Throughout their recovery, the eagle’s intelligence and charisma are impossible to miss—they always seem aware of everything happening around them. For example, this bird would watch us keenly as we performed their care. Seeing such a powerful and majestic bird regain their strength, and eventually their freedom, after so much care and dedication was an unforgettable moment.”
Releasing the eagle was an event celebrated by dozens of DCHS supporters, local community members, and wildlife staff and volunteers. She flew high into the sky and didn't look back, which was exactly what we hoped for.
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