A Glorious Day to Release an Eagle
Bob and I and volunteers Bill and Tiffany met Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife biologists Mark Vekasy and Jim Watson in Dixie, WA. We followed Mark up to the top of a nearby hill where Golden Eagle 20-001 would be released.
Bill and Tiffany had rescued the eagle on New Year’s Day after she was struck by a vehicle near Dixie while feeding on road kill (a skunk, and almost 9 months later she still smelled like a skunk!). Her right leg was broken and she had a highly toxic amount of lead in her blood. Dr. Katie Yackley, Pendleton Veterinary Clinic, surgically repaired the broken leg. As the leg healed the eagle received two courses of chelation to remove the lead from her blood. Now, she was going to be released. A pandemic and smoke from wildfires did not diminish our excitement!
20-001 was going to be monitored after her release as part of a US Fish and Wildlife post-release study. All kinds of measurements were taken including skull, beak, wings, talon length and weight. She was fitted with a solar powered telemetry unit that will transmit her movements to a satellite. Every three days the data will be downloaded and plotted on a map. Below is the first map we received the morning after her release. The telemetry unit traveled from Concete, WA in Jim’s pickup to the release location where it was mounted on the eagle. That's why you see a long yellow line to the right of the release location. The eagle traveled about 0.6 miles to the southeast after her release Wednesday afternoon and then roosted. We should receive another map the first of the week.
It is archery season in eastern Washington. This means that in the immediate future 20-001 will likely have an easy time finding food as there will be gut piles from deer taken by archery hunters. Although we were able to remove most of the lead in the eagle’s blood, we know lead is still present in other organs in her body. We also know lead reduces cognitive abilities and coordination. We do not know if 20-001 will still be able to successfully hunt wild prey. Like many predators, Golden Eagles are opportunistic and quite willing to scavenge. Soon rifle season will begin and the gut piles available to scavenge will contain lead if they are from deer killed with lead ammunition. This is likely how 20-001 was poisoned last hunting season. Hunting with non-lead ammunition will prevent secondary poisoning of eagles like 20-001. If you don’t already, please consider Hunting Lead-Free!
Below is a video Winnie compiled of the eagle’s rehab and release.
