Friday, June 3, 2011

What's up in San Juan county?






Here we go again....two more birds in from San Juan county, Monticello again. These two are orphaned due to the death of a parent and then the nest went down with part of a tree during a wind storm. We don't know why the parent hawk is dead. Hopefully we can determine the cause. These are Ferruginous hawk chicks. I've attached pictures. They are a level 2 on Utah's Sensitive Species list.





The chicks are in pretty good shape and about 20 days old. What cuties! There will be a lot of time involved with these little guys and the food, well, that's going to be a big expense for the next several weeks. I'll be posting photo's as they grow so keep checking in.




Fury, our Golden eagle that survived secondary lead poisoning, is now out in our large flight. She is having some minor issues with balance, due to the lead poisoning. Hopefully this will resolve in time. We had to move Hershel, our Turkey Vulture, out of the flight so Fury could go in. He lost some critical feathers on the wing where his surgery took place. These are already growing back, but more time is needed before he can fly, so out of the flight he went. Fury needs to work on getting stronger so the large area is critical for her right now. Don't worry, Hershel isn't confined in a horribly small enclosure; he went from the flight, which is like the luxury suit at a hotel, to the economy room.




We also took in a young Western Scrub Jay that left the nest just a bit early. He's about ready to be released. All of our Starling babies are now released. They are literally spread over several counties. Spreading the DNA around!




Jupiter, our young Red-Tail hawk from San Pete county, is doing a great deal better. Still, not 100% sure why he went down, but I still suspect electrocution. He is eating well on his own and today, mice were added to his diet, again and this time he ate them. Go Jupiter! He's becoming stronger and more aggressive. Remember his feathers were in bad shape so some of them have broken off. Hopefully that is over.







We also have a mystery nestling in our care. He's growing like a weed. Having come in at 6 grams, he is now over 20 grams. Eyes are still closed and only a little down. I'm truely amazed that he survived and is thriving.

It will be wonderful to see what he is but that is still several days (10-15) away. He was found on a sidewalk in Price.



Last, but not least, we have 2 little Robin orphans. Not related, they came from different areas. They're both about the same age so they enjoy each other very much. Cute, cute, cute!



Thanks for checking in........

Debbie


Feathered brothers and sisters, you came to us broken and as you bled…….we saw you desperate, dehydrated, desiccated, diseased, distressed, emaciated, famished, frayed, frightened, helpless, hungry, ragged, ravenous, shaken, shocked, shot, sickly, stressed, stunned, tattered, thirsty, traumatized, torn, weary and wounded. Defiantly, you stood us off with your last breath as we tried to tend to you. We saw you come in as cute, naked, fuzzy, cuddly youth, as mischievous, defiant adolescents, as fierce, regal rulers of the sky and as cunning, maimed elders whose time on earth was almost done. You endeared yourselves to us, bit us, charmed us, footed us, delighted us, hissed at us, talked to us, mantled at us, and graced us with your presence.

Some of you mended and were able to go on your way, never looking back. Some of you were injured in ways that prevented you from going, so you stayed with us to teach us…….And we came to love you. Others were too far gone, and you went home - where you fly free from pain with the Great One. All of you have touched us, and we are changed because of you.

used with permission by Arlene Powers


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