We’ve Matched 2017 admissions!
This young Red-tailed Hawk, 18-352, was blown from her nest a bit prematurely during a wind storm near Haines, OR. She’s a bit underweight, but appears to be uninjured. Our preference would be to reunite her with her family. If that is not possible, another option is to put her into a hack box and release her in a few days so she can join the flock of hawks returning to the hack box for food.
18-352 was the 48th Red-tailed Hawk admitted in 2018. 417 Barn Owls have been raised a the Tri-Cities center. All but a handful have fledged. To date, BMW has had 990 admissions in 2018, the same number as were admitted in all of 2017.
Red-tailed Hawk 18-323
A young Red-tailed Hawk was found on the ground near Yakima. It was emaciated, but had no apparent injuries. A radiograph showed the lungs looked abnormal. We suspected aspergillosis, a fungal infection that stressed Red-tailed Hawks are susceptible to. The stressor in this case may well have been starvation. The young hawk died two days after admission. A necropsy showed large numbers of fungal lesions throughout the hawks internal organs.
Black-Crowned Night Heron 18-325
We rarely admit Black-Crowned Night Herons. This young heron had managed to fracture his tarsometatarsus just above the foot.
We fashioned a boot to immobilize the heron’s foot and lower leg. Below, Zabrina is medicating the heron while Todd restrains the bird.
Cooper’s Hawk 18-329
The first young Cooper’s Hawk of the season was admitted this past week. She appears to be uninjured. Due to its location, we were not able to return her to her nest. She will be fostered into a nest at the Tri-Cities center (the first time Cooper’s Hawks have nested there).
Great Gray Owlet 18-240 Update
He’s getting big and Spirit is taking motherhood very seriously! You approach this guy at your own peril.
Northern Flicker 18-345
An adult Northern Flicker flew into a window at Walla Walla Community College. The flicker has dislocated his left shoulder. While he was recovering from anesthesia, we couldn’t help but notice his unique tongue. The tip is equipped with tiny barbs, perfect for extracting insects from the crevices in tree bark.
Common Nighthawk 18-341
This Common Nighthawk collided with something in Lacrosse, WA, fracturing its right radius and dislocating the right shoulder. The wing has been immobilized with a bandage.
The coloration of nighthawk feathers is amazing.
