Bald Eagle

The new year started on day 1 with a Bald Eagle hit by a vehicle near Trout Creek. The hind legs were not working at all, making it unable to stand. Though nothing appeared broken, a vet visit was scheduled and laser treatment with some gentle stretching started. Dr. Lawson took from Glacier Animal Hospital took x-rays from a variety of angles revealing nothing was broken. By the end of January, it was eating on its own again as well as being able to stand on one leg and leaning or on 2 legs with the use of its wings. Once it managed to stand for longer periods of time with less wing help, it was moved to the 40ft chamber. Gaining some strength, it was perching first on a stump & then mastering the ramp to a higher perch. A bath was in order after all the time spent on the ground; the eagle was not crazy about the idea, but with Billie’s gentle touch, it put up with the scrub and enjoyed being able to finish preening. By March it was flying in the 40 ft chamber, making it a good time to step up to the flight barn. It took a few days of practice to get to the upper perches and the weaker leg didn’t always want to work well – it still had work to do. By mid-April, we observed smooth landings and doing several laps at a time without stopping. It was ready for its chance to be free again. Often when we release a bird, they head to something to perch on, check out their surroundings before taking flight and going about life, however this one decided to go for a ride instead. It found some air currents & kept going back and forth and up and up and up. We watched it soar till it was just a speck in the sky above the clouds, heading west. What a happy bird it was and yes, there were smiles on our faces! 

Golden Eagle

Mid-February a Golden Eagle was brought to the Center after being hit by a vehicle out of Troy, Montana. Upon arrival it was trying to stand but didn’t have good balance or vision. No major injuries were found, the lead level was low, so a head injury was suspected. After a few days, its balance and vision improved, making it possible for it to get up on a perch, although assist feeding was still necessary. By 10 days at the Center, it started to eat on its own, so was moved to the flight chamber. We contacted Raptor View Research Institute which studies and bands eagles, and they agreed to come a week later when the bird was ready to be released. This bird was determined to be a male about 5 years old. John, one of our volunteers, agreed to transport the eagle back to the Troy area to be released. He met up with the initial rescuers in the general spot the eagle was found. As it turned out the area was a piece of Vital ground (a land trust organization that helps put land into conservation easements) making it a perfect spot to release this eagle. Thanks to all the people involved in helping this bird and to RVRI for collaborating with us on getting it banded.

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You can see the video of the release here!

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Check out the Raptor View Research Institute here

Golden Eagle

Near the end of February a person saw a Golden Eagle get hit by a car as it flew away from a deer carcass along the road. In a quick response, he went to the downed bird and threw a blanket over it, loaded It in his car and brought it to us. She was a big girl at 14 lbs. so this was an amazing feat! On inspection, nothing appeared broken, the lead was elevated so chelation treatments were started, fluids were administered, and food offered. Over the next few days chelation shots were given and it needed assist feeding. When a representative of Raptor View Research Institute had come to band the previous Golden Eagle, they banded this one as well. It was determined that it was a female about 4 years old. Upon retesting her lead level was declining, she was eating on her own so she was moved to the 40 ft flight chamber to test her flying skills. Monday, March 11 we took her to Lost Trail National Wildlife Refuge in the general area near where she was found, joined by the site biologist, site manager and a USFWS agent to release her. She was impatient, rushing out, taking a split second to look around before taking a long strong flight landing on a rock outcrop where she sat and took in her surroundings. She then hiked up the hill a short way before taking flight again & heading up towards Island Lake. What a graceful, amazing, joyous thing to watch. 

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You can see the video of the release here!

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Check out Lost Trail Wildlife Refuge here

Bald Eagle

2023 ended with a mature bald eagle being admitted that had a lead level too high to read on our machine. It appeared to have neurological issues, difficulty perching, and it didn’t want to eat on its own. A 5-day round of chelation treatments were started, hydration and assist feeding. After the 3-day rest period was completed after the treatments, it was retested, however the reading was still too high to read. It had started eating on its own, looking more alert and flying, so we were hoping even though the level was high that it was improving. After another round of chelation treatment it was retested, and again the reading was still too high to read. A vet visit was scheduled for an x-ray to see if there was lead inside the bird that needed to be removed. Dr Lawson from Glacier Animal Hospital was very thorough, but nothing was found. A 4th round of chelation treatments were done. After the rest period was completed it was retested - this time the test came back with a readable number, low enough to show significant improvement and almost back to a releasable level. After a week of just eating, flying and living, we retested, and the number had gone down even lower, so it was decided this eagle was ready to go home. It did a long flight and landed on a treetop. We were all very excited for this eagle to make it – often high lead levels like this one had, are a death sentence. This one said it wasn’t its time. 

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You can see the video of the release here!

Red-tailed Hawk

2024 started out with cold winter conditions that were hard on the wild raptor population. One of those was a red tail hawk. On January 18, it was found on the ground unable to fly. It was cold, wet and underweight but didn’t have any apparent injuries. We hydrated it and put it in chamber with some mice. By the second day, it was eating voraciously. Over the next few days, we kept increasing the food offered and it kept eating. It continued to be a hardy eater for the next couple weeks. When it had gained some weight and was eating a more normal amount of food in a day – it was decided it could be released. He had a great flight and didn’t waste any time flying to a tree and fluffing in the sunshine. A quick turn around makes us very happy! Thank you, observant citizens who helped this bird get to the center for a little extra boost after the cold weather.

You can see the video of the release here!