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A closeup of some noble neighbors
The recent Upper Delaware EXPO at the Damascus Elementary School in Damascus, PA on October 25 provided an opportunity for guests to see some magnificent creatures up close and personal, when Bill Streeter of the Delaware Valley Raptor Center gave a presentation of a number of live local raptors including eagles, owls and hawks.
In general, the center rehabilitates birds so that they can be released into the wild. Sometimes, however, the injuries are so severe that such release is not possible; these are used in public presentations. The raptors that are used for this purpose can at least play the role of helping educate the public to appreciate them and to understand how to avoid infringing on their environmental needs.
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| TRR photo by Scott Rando | |
| The most common hawks found in our area, red-tails, can be found soaring above or perched on a tree branch in search of prey. This hawk was found in the wild with a wing injury that has hampered its flying ability.
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| TRR photo by Scott Rando | |
Julia, a female golden eagle, shown here with Delaware Valley Raptor Center (DVRC) director Bill Streeter, was transferred from a rehabilitator in Wyoming in 2005. Julia was hit by a car and sustained a broken leg and a head injury that eventually caused blindness in one eye. Because of this condition, she would have little chance of surviving in the wild.
Because Julia was previously used as an educational bird out west, she immediately stood on a fist and was very calm in her new home upon arrival at DVRC. She is about average for a female golden eagle (14 pounds), where bald eagles usually average 9 to 12 pounds.
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| TRR photo by Scott Rando | |
| This is a saw-whet owl, the smallest owl found in our area—it weighs about three to five ounces. This owl was found by a roadside, probably struck by a car. It is blind in one eye. An owl needs both eyes for range finding prey in the dark, so this bird would not survive long in the wild.
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