Some Stories Never Get Old

This posting is a bit late as I have been having some problems with posting pictures. I couldn't bear telling this story without the pictures. I am also happy to share this behind the scenes photo that shows how we hold birds (not more than 30 minutes) in preparation for release.

The hood keeps the bird, a cooper's hawk calm by keeping the vision dark. Hawks are very visual, so taking away sight goes a long way towards preventing them from intense stress or hurting themselves or their feathers which would jeopardize the release. Coincidentally, this bird remained with us for a very long time because of feather damage incurred while quarantined because of an infectious disease. Cooper's hawks are very high strung birds and will frequently fling themselves around their enclosure in a frantic attempt to escape. We were thrilled that we

were able to nurture this bird back to health and then provide a safe enclosure in which

the bird could grow feathers again and regain strength which allowed for her release. The towel restrains movement and prevents the panic response that sometimes ensues when a bird is left hooded in a cage. They remain quite calm and able to breathe.

When we schedule a public release, we like to have the bird ready ahead of time in case of any unforeseen circumstances. We also transport birds in this manner sometimes as well. Rolling a towel around them and securing the velcro band helps to restrict their activity. When unable to move, most animals tend to calm down (notice I said most). I like to explain the rationale behind our restraint of the birds because people tend to react very violently when they see an image like this, but when learning the rationale, they understand and become very intrigued how this actually works. Same principle works with cattle, horses, and other animals that would respond in panic situations.

So I happily said a little prayer and we sent this cooper's hawk on her way, just in time for the fall migration. The honor of release went to Justin, our herpetologist who has yet to release a bird. He was, understandably so, very excited about his first release. Way to go Justin! And way to go Cooper!

Back Where They Belong

This beautiful little hawk is a young cooper's hawk that had fallen from the nest tree during the start of the rainy season here in South Florida. Her sibling arrived at the Miami Science Museum just two days before. We were unable to return them to the nest immediately due to ongoing storms which put not only the birds, but the humans at risk. We nervously waited a week but when we arrived, we not only found both parents, but another sibling still in the nest tree. Remaining baby in tree.

All renesting photos courtesy of Richard Williams, the concerned resident who brought both birds to our center.Parent in nearby tree
I prepare the youngster for the last leg of her trip home.

Once again Jeff Fobb is there to assist and he has positioned himself in the nest tree.

I climb up to make the hand off to Jeff. The young hawk is hooded to keep her calm.
Fortunately it was a success, but.....part of the story is missing in these photos. Would have been a great shot for a few laughs had Richard gotten the prelude to why I'm holding this young hawk who is now wet. Can't blame him though, we were all sort of in shock as the bird flew around from branches and towards the lake. She made a desperate attempt to grab at a palm tree that we all knew was a doomed effort, and fluttered into the lake, quite gently if I may say so! What happened next got me hauling my butt off the ladder rather quickly. A big black male muscovy duck made a beeline for our young friend and she desperately began to swim for the shore. As the duck gained ground I sprinted towards the lake, tossing my cell phone in the grass and heading straight into the lake with shoes, socks and all other clothing intact. Thankfully the lake was shallow, the hawk was within arms reach, and the only wet clothing I had to endure were the socks. The bird was safe.

On the third try of placing the bird in a tree farther away from the lake, the young hawk dried out a bit before flying about 10 feet across to the tree containing her siblings, and we all breathed in relief as she settled on a branch next to her other sibling and one of her parents. Too bad no one caught the more glamorous side of this story on film, but hopefully you got the gist of it and clapped just as we did at the happy ending to this story.

Double your pleasure-two vultures released

Two turkey vultures were released this week only a couple of miles from downtown Miami. Why might you ask do we release them there? Simple, that's where they spend their days in the winter. I regularly watch them go back and forth over the Museum at the beginning and toward the end of the day. From time to time we see them flying really low and you can often see their eyes checking you out as they swoop in low to see if they can figure out why all of those birds are down there.

Turkey vultures migrate in large numbers for the winter and fill our skies until spring. Although seemingly sinister to some, they are shy creatures and do not prey on live animals, but prefer to fulfill the role of nature's garbage men. Some may consider them ugly and unappealing, but to see a vulture in flight is truly a majestic sight for me at least.

These unfortunate two were admitted last week after becoming trapped inside an atrium on the roof of a condominium. Thankfully, they only suffered trauma as a result of their predicament and just needed a few days and a few good meals before they were again ready to soar above the high rise buildings in downtown.

Vultures are extremely tough and resilient creatures, but we must treat them quickly as with any bird that needs help. Bird bones are hollow and heal twice as quickly as mammal bones. Delayed treatment can result in an injury that cannot be fixed. Birds will not remain on the ground as a general rule unless feeding. Please report any bird that has been on the ground for more than a couple of hours to your local wildlife rehabilitator.

3 reasons to celebrate the new year

As usual, at the end of any given year we still have quite a few patients in rehabilitation from the yearly migration. Because Miami and the Florida Keys are considered hot spots in the Atlantic Flyway and one of the last stops before heading over the ocean, we see more of a variety raptors this time of year than any other. Starting in late September and early October, we will see the first of these visitors, the peregrine falcons.

This peregrine falcon was the last one received in 2008. She arrived with no visible injuries other than a massive amount of weight and the inability to fly. Laboratory tests yielded no conclusive answers other than the extra weight causing an enormous amount of stress on her internal organs. Her reluctance to feed was another cause for concern as peregrine falcons seem to be willing to eat rather readily. As her appetite came around and she finally began to eat, we were disheartened to find that she had injured herself in her outside enclosure. It seemed that every gain that we were to make ended up in a loss right behind it.

I brought the bird back inside so that I could treat and monitor the injuries, and I became quite fond of her. Though she was a wild creature with all the characteristics that any patient would have, I could see quite readily why the peregrine falcon was so coveted and beloved by falconers all over the world. In fact, at this moment I'm reading Jim Enderson's "Peregrine Falcon: Stories of the Blue Meanie." It is a fascinating account of the history of the loss of the peregrine and other raptors due to the use of a pesticide called DDT. Although I am only about a third of the way through, I look forward to reading about how the peregrine made a comeback as Enderson hints early on that it was a labor of love by field biologists, falconers, and many others.

It was a very happy moment for me this day when I watched her fly away and over the building without a look back. This is where she belonged, back in the world and free, and to resume the next chapter in her life. I would be maybe a distant memory for her, but she would always be remembered, as are all of the peregrines that stay for any amount of time. You can follow the migration of peregrine falcons from their home in the Artic to South America on one of my favorite raptor sites the Falcon Research Group's http://www.frg.org/. Don't forget to look for the links to the Southern Cross Peregrine Project, their blog about their research on wild peregrines using transmitters for tracking. It is very interesting!

Not to be understated, we also released an American kestrel this same day. This tiny little falcon was admitted with a fractured wing that healed beautifully. He was the picture of health and flew away with no problem. The American kestrel is the smallest of all North American falcons and migrates in large numbers also to Florida for the winter season.

Lastly, at the end of the day an eastern screech owl (our educational screech owl is pictured here) was released back into the area where it was found in West Miami near the Everglades. This owl was found in the middle of the road, likely hit by a car. After a little rest and recuperation, it was ready to return to its home and possibly its mate as breeding season is upon us very, very soon. We will have but a brief few weeks between the migration and baby season to catch our breath.

Why Rehabilitation, Does It Matter?

What a week! Between getting over the holidays and rounding up all of the records that will be included in a report to the federal government, I've had barely time to breathe. I've been sitting on a couple of pictures that I've been dying to post, when it occurred to me that I wanted to address this controversial question that has recently popped up in a fight over the validity of wildlife rehabilitation in the state of North Dakota. Seems that state wildlife agencies believe that the contribution of rehabilitators is insignificant and even at times detrimental to wildlife populations. The outcry against this decision caused reconsideration.. You can read about it in the Grand Forks Herald at http://www.grandforksherald.com/articles/index.cfm?id=100107&section=News

I have many thoughts on this issue, some of which border on the highly emotional "over the top" variety, but I would like to present a couple of cases that arrived this week as evidence for why rehabilitation is so important, both for the animals themselves and for humanity as a whole. It is a lengthy post, but one I hope will be thought provoking.

Example # 1
The evil that men (or women) do

You are looking at a photo of a mourning dove that was admitted at the Miami Science Museum on Wednesday January 7, 2009. What you see protruding from either side of the bird is a blowdart from a blowgun. Unfortunately, I didn't think to snap a picture before I cut off the sharp end and taped it to prevent further injury to the bird or handlers. You can however clearly see that it has been impaled, likely from a person standing over it probably while it was feeding on the ground at a feeder. It was transferred to Pelican Harbor Seabird Station for further care. The dart could not be removed without causing immediate further damage and possible uncontrolled bleeding. Unfortunately it died before surgery could be performed to attempt this delicate procedure.

The woman who discovered this bird, worked tirelessly to find out where to take it. It is not always easy for members of the public to find rehabilitators. After all, there's not a listing in the yellow pages like veterinarians or even pet groomers. Then, after she found the Miami Science Museum, she was faced with the task of capturing the bird. I could not go to the location as I was on the way to an appointment for a recheck on another bird. I offered her the option of bringing it to the vet's office. She agreed but did not come because she could not find the bird. I was now on the way back from the vet's office and I counseled her on where to look for the bird. Finally at around 6pm she called again to tell me she had found it and I was able to arrange with one of our volunteers to receive the bird from her.

Now, imagine this scenario playing out without the rehabilitator. She may have never found the bird, because between the time she saw it and the time I told her to retrieve it and bring it to the vet's office, the bird went and hid. Then if she had in fact found the bird and found no one to help her, she may have attempted to pull the dart out and the bird would have possibly bled to death in front of her.



It would be completely reasonable to say, well the bird would have died quickly rather than in two days. I say however, how would this have affected this person, who by the way was extremely distraught by the cruelty of the individual who had speared this bird? Would she make the effort to save another injured or suffering animal? Because if she did, who would help her anyway? Maybe she would encourage others to do nothing. Or maybe she would continue to try to help, and unknowingly cause the death of a savable animal because of her lack of knowledge.


I say it is not the outcome of this case, but rather what qualities in the human being this little creature brought out. I believe that many or even most of us want to help the helpless, and by feeling that we helped an animal that would have suffered and died a painful death without us, helps us to feel that we can somehow affect a balance for this horrendous act. We were also able to share this story with others as the news media broadcast the photo. Hopefully we were able to spread the word that help is there if they need it, and yes one person can make a difference.

Example #2

There are happy endings
This little hawk is called a sharp shinned hawk. These tiny little bird hunters migrate to our area during the winter months. A concerned citizen found this bird in his back yard unable to fly. it was rescued by the Venom One Response Unit of the Miami Dade Fire Department. They have donated their rescue services this year and become a valuable resource for us during the busiest part of our year. Many thanks always to them for their dedication to saving animals all across Miami Dade County!

We believed that the hawk was suffering from severe head trauma, most likely from a collision with a window, and after less than a month at our facility, it was time for its release back into the wild. The other shots show myself and Lt. Jeff Fobb releasing the bird just outside our facility. Since these birds are migratory, we are allowed to release them in locations of our discretion. The neighborhood of Coconut Grove is comprised of dense canopy and lies within the Atlantic flyway for many migratory birds of prey.


Moments like this are the holy grail of wildlife rehabilitation. Not only do we save the individual, but we contribute to the overall survival of the species by returning an individual that may successfully mate and raise young. To the skeptics and critics of wildlife rehabilitation who claim that a certain percentage of the wildlife population is doomed to die in their first year, I say does that take into account all of the man made obstacles such as cars, windows, buildings, shotguns, and poisons? I see more than enough animals that do not make this comeback from these hazards. So we celebrate these moments of triumph and hope that you will as well, and support wildlife rehabilitation in whatever corner of the world wildlife thrives!