One of the hardest jobs at World Bird Sanctuary is working
in the Rehabilitation Department. I don’t mean in terms of physical labor,
although keeping the Wildlife Hospital clean is by no means easy. Each
department at World Bird Sanctuary has quite a lot to maintain.
A Great Horned Owl recuperating in our wildlife hospital
When we receive a bird into our hospital, we immediately check it over to determine any injuries. Any
treatable injuries are immediately addressed, and if no physical injuries are
apparent we, along with our vet, attempt to determine the problem with tests
and x-rays. Sometimes all a bird
needs is supportive therapy until it is old enough or strong enough to hunt on
its own.
A Red-tailed Hawk well on his way to recovery
Once a diagnosis is made we prepare an enclosure where it
can recover. We then feed it, to make sure it gets the nutrients it needs to
heal. We admit between 300 and 400 injured birds of prey every year, and we
generally have a 44% release rate. This is one of the best release rates in the
wildlife rehab industry. It means that 44 out of every 100 birds we see in
the hospital are released back into the wild without a problem.
It is hard to see birds struggle with illness and injury,
and succumb to these maladies every day. We do everything we can to help these
birds recover, but even with our
best efforts it sometimes isn’t enough.
An Osprey spending time in a flight mew to build up his flight muscles
Working in the Wildlife Hospital is a paradox. Dealing with those patients who don’t
survive is one of the saddest parts of WBS. At the same time, those who do survive, and are able to be
released, is one of the most rewarding experiences at WBS.
In my time with WBS, I have released two birds from the
Rehabilitation Department: a Cooper’s Hawk and a Great Horned Owl. The Cooper’s
Hawk was a female, and she had been injured after she flew into a window. Her
shoulder was dislocated, and she recovered at the hospital for a few weeks
before she was ready to be released.
It was the very last day of my internship in 2010, and I was
very excited to be able to release a rehabbed bird. I picked the hawk up on a
Saturday morning, and drove with her to Busch Wildlife Conservation Area in
Weldon Spring, MO. My parents came
along, happy to be part of the occasion… and happy to take a gazillion pictures
as well.
My very first release - a rehabilitated Cooper's Hawk
We picked a spot near one of the numerous lakes at Busch
Wildlife, as there was certain to be a large concentration of small songbirds,
the Cooper’s Hawk’s favorite prey. I pulled the hawk out of the crate and prepared
to release her. The release went off without a hitch. My parents and I watched
the hawk soar over the lake, into the trees and out of sight.
My second release was just this summer. This time, it was a
Great Horned Owl. This bird had been an orphan, brought into the hospital
because its parents weren’t feeding it anymore. She was fostered at the lower
site by our experienced Great Horned Owl mother, Genie, for a few weeks before
her release.
I drove this owl all the way to Cuba, MO to release her. I
could have gone somewhere closer to home, but this release was special to me. My grandfather lives in Cuba, and I wanted to be able to share something
special with him. He is a bird lover like me (I come by it honestly, I guess),
and I knew that he would be thrilled to witness the release of this owl.
My most special Return To The Wild because I got to share it with my Grandpa
My grandpa owns land in Cuba, and one part of this land has
a small pond. We chose that spot to give the owl some flying room. At dusk, we
walked down to the edge of the pond--my grandpa, my parents and me. I pulled
the owl from her crate, and, with a much smoother movement than with the
Cooper’s Hawk so long ago, tossed her into the air. She winged her way silently
over the pond to begin a new life. My grandfather stood in awe as she flew
away. I was so happy to be able to experience the thrill of release with him.
Though working with the sick and injured birds in the
Wildlife Hospital can be disheartening at times, you remember the reason you do
it when you see a rehabbed bird soaring away from you toward freedom.
If you or a member of your family would like to experience
the thrill of releasing one of our rehabbed patients Click Here for
information about our Return To The Wild program.
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