Monday, April 6, 2009

This Week at Liberty 04/06/2009

I missed one whole day (well, actually 34 hours!) last week as I drove to El Paso to do some more road show presentations, but I still found enough photo-ops (including one of me!) to complete the update.
In they come, the injured from all over the state, and the babies from, well, just about everywhere! Some will fly again, some won't, some are reunited with families, others will make up new families of their own. We see every degree on the arc of the circle of life at Liberty, especially in the springtime. This week...
The injured white pelican is recuperating nicely.
The white pelican that came in from Tempe Towne Lake last week did, in fact, lose part of his right wing.  His flying career may be over, but his future is far from dim.  We are currently locating a facility that can care for him as he assumes his new role as an educational bird.  He seems to be doing much better now that he has good medical care and a safe environment in which to heal.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Alicia watches Kristine treat her rescued great blue heron.
We actually took in a few GBHs last week, some adults, some juvies. This youngster is almost full sized but when volunteer Alicia brought him in, he presented as a juvenile who wasn't doing well on his own.  Though thin, hungry and dehydrated, he is doing OK as he he gets a dose of TLC (Tender Liberty Care) before his return to the wilds of Sun Lakes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dr. Orr checks a bald eagle.
Last weekend, a small male bald eagle arrived from up north.  Along with a badly broken wing, the little guy showed signs of some serious internal injuries as well. A few anxious days ensued as each day he survived was a miracle in itself. He isn't out of the woods by a long shot, but he is slowly getting stronger each day as he stubbornly clings to life - as one would expect of the national symbol! Keep your fingers crossed for this one.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Two baby roadrunners are fed on arrival.
Just in time for Easter, the bunnies arrive!
Carl Price drove to our contact point in Ft.Mojave last week and brought back two boxes. One held two little orphaned road runners, and the other three tiny baby bunnies. Yes, we treat the extreme ends of the food chain at Liberty, sometimes both from the same rescue!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hogan's foster brood grows.
Speaking of Ft.Mojave, the baby GHO that got helicoptered in recently is doing great and seems to be enjoying the family life with two foster siblings and the care he's getting from Hogan. She has three fosters now, and Ophelia and hamlet have two  more.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The baby barnies are doing fine.
Abba and Tyto, not to be out done, are also doing a fine job raising their own foster brood. Four little barn owls have hatched, with one more in the ICU and several more eggs to go! Considering that the baby bird season has only just begun, it looks like it's going to be a busy spring...and summer!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Feeding a baby towhee.
Another example of why they're called "gapers".
"I'M HUNGRY...AGAIN!!!"
If you haven't signed up for the "Virtual baby bird shower" at the Liberty web store, do it NOW! libertywildlife.net is the address. The need for food and equipment to help save these and all the other babies is growing as fast as their clutch sizes! It doesn't cost much and these
little ones don't know there's a recession on. (Sorry about the commercial, but I get carried away sometimes...my bad?)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Not every baby comes in from hundreds of miles away - or in a helicopter. 
Fresh from the egg - and the incubator.
Babies come from all sources, and in every conceivable conveyance. One caring lady brought in a complete nest with two baby birds in it that had blown down in one of our recent high-wind advisory days. And a couple of the RTH eggs that arrived from a recent nest move have hatched in our own super-whizz-bang high-tech incubator.  The little orphans will be 'puppet fed' for a few days and then get to live with our foster parent red-tails until they can join the team!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Nina hands off to Kim...
Kim makes the toss...

She shoots - she scores!!!
If you remember back in December, I rescued a sad looking harris' hawk with a fairly serious head injury from north of Phoenix.  At first, her survival was in doubt, but the wizards on the Medical Services team worked their magic and, though she did lose the sight in one eye, she recovered. We found that she could compensate for the degradation of vision, and since HaHas get a lot of help from their friends and families, she should do just fine. Last Thursday, Kim, the lady who made the original call to get her rescued, got to release her into her old territory. The bird immediately flew into a nearby tree and, after calling out to her family, regained the title of "queen mother harris' hawk" of Dynamite Road. (Don't you just love it when a story ends like this?)

No comments: