On June 10, 2005 we got two immature bald eagles from the game warden, Dave Algrem, from Waushara county. The nest tree was hit by lightning and was on fire. One bird was alreay on the ground and the second one came down with the tree.
We wish to thank Dave for taking the time out of his busy day to transport the young birds here.
You can see the horrible damage to all the main feathers. Lightning can damage the folicle on the bird and then the feathers will never grown again.
The feet of both birds had the exit marks of the lightning. They had actual holes in them. They were both put on medicine and cream to start the healing. One of the birds lost two talons also. Talons are like our finger nails and will grow back in time.
This is a photo of one of the tails. Nothing but shafts remain. We wonder what the full effect of the lightning would be, would they grow good feather and how long would it take?
This was the underside of the wing. Thunder's right wing was burnt the worst and Lightning's left wing was the worst. It would be a long time in a cage before the molt and then to see if the feathers would come in good enough for a release. Birds molt once a year, they lose the old feathers and grow new ones.
This is lightning. Just to let you see the complete damage to the feathers.
When they went to the vets the leg wounds were cleaned and checked for parasites. Each bird was x rayed to see if there were any broken bones. Lightning had a slight fracture to the left wing also, but if kept quiet it would heal on its own.
An eagle is a hard bird to handle for its size. So we got a friend to handle them at the vets office.
The summer turned into fall and winter and the two birds ate good and perched after their feet healed. It would be a long time for them in a cage before the molt started in 2006.
Spring of 2006 finds the two of them good company. Late summer Thunder's feathers are almost in and just waiting for the winter waters to freeze and she will be released at the Petenwell dam just east of Necedah Wisconsin.
In the late summer of 2006 we got in a car hit immature and the three of them spent time together just waiting for the winter of 2006 to come.
Don Baumgartner and Dr James Ziegler of Wolf River Vet Clinic examin the car hit bird.
Dr Ziegler is our wildlife vet for The Feather.
This is the car hit eagle. She will be released with Thunder later in 2006.
On the morning of December 10,2006 the small group of people going to the release banded both the eagles in the kitchen. Don Baumgartner holds the bird while William Powell and his wife Jan put the band on.
The bands are a size 9 and are put on with a rivet. Birds of prey tend to try to bite the bands off some times and with a rivet it will not ever happen.
Eagle number two is now being banded. Large cardboard boxes will serve as the container to ship the birds to release site. It is a two hour drive to the dam.
Don puts Thunder up first and Bill will throw his bird next.
Thunder is in the air and does well. She turns to the left and flys directly into the building and sits on the ledge. We watch from outside the fence and can not get to her to see if she is hurt or not. We watch for a while and then leave.
He is where she sat after she hit the building.
THUNDER IN REHAB...............
Three months later we got a call from a vets office over by Prairie du sac saying they had an eagle in rehab that had a spinal injury. It was Thunder. She had made three months, flew 75 miles south on the Wisconsin river and had gained 2 pounds. On the day of her accident she was observed fighting with an adult eagle in the air. When the two birds unlocked talons one fell to the ice on its back. The person watching called a rehabber. She never stood again and died in rehab two days later. Had she not been banded we would have never known of her journey. Banding is perhaps the most important tool in rehabbing. Even tho the outcome was short lived she died in her own world being an eagle.
Lightning spent from December 10, 2006 until now alone in the cage. This was her in early summer
In April 2007 we brought her down and checked her feathers. Still no improvement from when she came in. Hopfully the summer will bring a good molt. She has spent her whole life up until now in a cage. She needs to be free to be an eagle.
In the end of June we again brought her down and the feathers are looking very promising. By November we will know for sure if she will make the release in winter 2007.
On November 18, 2007 we again brought her to the ground. The photo tells the story. She is perfect and ready to be set free.
She has spent the first 2-1/2 years in a cage and well deserves to finally get out of here.
I wish to thank all the caring people that took the time to make sure she got that "Second chance"
In the next couple days I will take some photos of her in the cage and then on release day more will be taken. Please check back to see the final chapter on "LIGHTNING"
12-DEC-2007
Friday December 14, 2007. Lightnings last day in a cage. The next time she spreads her wings she will finally be a free bird.
15-DEC-2007
ON the morning of December 15, 2007 Don caught her up in the pen. The first step in the long day.
15-DEC-2007
Don cradles her to the house to band her.
15-DEC-2007
She is banded in the kitchen. Mike Lawton, John Mayr, Wendy Mayr and Don Baumgartner holding.
15-DEC-2007
You do not want to get in the way of these talons.
15-DEC-2007
The long two hour drive was a bit much for her. She had to be put in a smaller box on the way to the release site. She did finally settle down.
OUT OF THE BOX and she has an attitude................
15-DEC-2007
Don held her for photos. She did settle down once out of the box.
15-DEC-2007
Don had a great idea, seeing she had never flew to a tree he figured it would be better for her to just sit and find out where she was and then what she wanted to do.. It worked.
He put her on a tree that had blown down and was on a angle. A good place to lift off from when she was ready.
15-DEC-2007
Alone on the branch
She sat on this tree for at least 6-7 minutes. She watched the pair of adult eagles on the other side of the shore. The swan and some 20 geese held her attention for a short time. She eyed the ground for a bit and then turned her eyes upward to watched the trees sway in the wind.
She turned around twice and checked out her new home with quick interest. She was in no hurry to start this new part of her life.
15-DEC-2007
Soon she turned and showed us she was ready to make the leap of faith into her new world.
15-DEC-2007
She turned to her left and leaped into the air like a mallard duck. She went over the tree line and followed the west shoreline of the river.
15-DEC-2007
She flew strong and hard. Her 8 foot wing span did what they were intended to do, lift her up.
She flew about 500 yards and landed in a tree still on the west shoreline of the Wisconsin river.
She spent the longest time in a cage then any other bird at The Feather. She left behind so many memories of her kind. She was one great bird. I will miss her and all the ones that left like her in the past 20 years. A wildlife rehabber has been given so many wonderful memories of things that the rest of you will never know. I have been blessed with the privilege of being with these creatures in my life. They have also brought so many great and caring people with them.
The Feather Wildlife rehab center wishes to thank some of the people that helped to make sure these eagles were released.
First of all to the great group of landowners where the eagles came from, The Pine Lake Property owners. To Marlys Hurst who hosted the nest tree and has since had the parents re nest the last two years on her part of the lake. Thanks for the donations over the years for upkeep of the birds. To Wm and Jan Powell who went with us on the first release and to Art Kucksdorf for the great write up in their newsletter.
To the New London fishermen who supplied us with fresh fish for over two years, Tom King, Steve Jordan, Don Cashmore, and game warden Mike Young who not only brought fish, but deer legs also.
To my neighbors and bus buddies, who supplied the bunnies and squirrels, Wally Heise, Carol Mc Ilraith, Curt Sommer, Lee Volz and Barb Jeffers.
To all the volunteers that make this place work year after year.
Don Baumgartner, Ginny Perrault, Wendy, John and William Mayer, Margie Nelson, Carol Mc Ilraith, Kevin Pullen, Ron Voltz, and Barb Jeffers.
Thanks to Pat Wolff from the Oshkosh Daily Northwestern and Gail Boehm from the Juneau County Star-Times for covering the release.
Last but not least the two young men at the Petenwell dam. To Virgil Schlorke Supervisior for WRPCO for plowing out the lot so we could get to the water site and to Darrin Johnson for keeping us updated on the eagles that visit the dam. Also good to see children at the release.
It has been almost a month now and so far we have not seen or heard from Lightning and I sure hope it is some 15-20 years before we do.
