A wing, a prayer and some human intervention

By S. Kim Henson  

SEPTEMBER 19, 2011 1:08 p.m. (0)

At her first ride, Carolina Raptor Center exhibited birds like golden eagle Zlaty, which Pollow now cares for. For the past seven years, she drives weekly to the center to clean Zlaty’s enclosure, weigh the bird and help with his training.

Pollow, one of 35 resident bird care volunteers in the Carolinas who volunteer at Carolina Raptor Center, participated three years in Ride for Raptors before visiting the non-profit raptor rehabilitation center and zoo in Huntersville, N.C. where all the proceeds from the ride are donated. “All it took was seeing the rescue work that keeps raptors alive and healthy,” said Pollow, “and I signed up right then for training to be a volunteer.”

Carolina Raptor Center, because of its close proximity to the Upstate is where most raptors are transported for extensive care and keeping. Of the 781 birds the facility took in the past 12 months, 98 were from the Upstate.

Rescued birds are likewise transported to The Center for Birds of Prey in Awendaw, said Pollow, which is also authorized as an Avian Medical Clinic and Oiled Bird Treatment Facility to help with rescue and cleaning of waterfowl in case of an oil spill.

The most common birds delivered to Carolina Raptor Center are red-tailed hawks, red-shouldered hawks, barred owls and great horned owls. Approximately 70 percent of birds that make it through the first 24 hours at the center are released back into the wild.

Last year, Wildlife Rehab of Greenville rescued 1,943 animals of which 554 were songbirds, 156 were waterfowl and 113 were raptors including red-tailed hawks, barred owls and vultures, said rehabber and former president Wendy Watson.

Most songbird injuries are from cat attacks, feral as well as housecats, which explains the rising concern among bird advocates about owners letting their cats roam.

Raptors typically sustain injuries from being hit by cars although some run into windows while chasing smaller birds, sustain gunshot wounds, and young raptors may starve because of inadequate hunting skills.

Linda Long Hoskinson of Wildlife Rehab of Greenville is one of three raptor rehabbers in the Upstate. She got into animal rehabilitation more than 32 years ago when her sister-in-law brought her an injured rabbit.

“Then there was the dove someone brought me the following year, a blue jay the next,” she said, “and now I stay in it because I can’t say no to the animals, and because too many people know my number.”

Hoskinson takes in raptors, attends to them during recovery and administers pain medication if necessary, unless the birds require treatment and training beyond her qualifications. In that case, Hoskinson transports them to a local veterinarian or to Carolina Raptor Center for surgery, further rehabilitation, to be socialized if they’re young, or to attend flight and mouse schools to assure the birds can fly and hunt before release. Non-releasable birds are sent to educational facilities to live or may reside on the Raptor Trail at the center.

“Carolina Raptor Center is one of only a few facilities in this region permitted by U.S. Fish and Wildlife to rehabilitate the American Bald eagle. Eagles require special care and the kind of facilities available here including our 100 foot flight cage used to exercise the larger birds and prepare them for release back into the wild,” said community relations director Michele Miller Houck.

Great horned owl Betbait assists around the center. She lays eggs each year that remain unhatched probably because she is old and no longer has a mate. Instead of nurturing her own offspring she acts as a surrogate mother and fosters orphaned great horned owls.

Eyewitnesses to injured birds typically contact the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, a local vet, animal shelter, animal control or the Humane Society, and they refer the calls onto local wildlife rehabilitators. Hoskinson said she encourages callers to confine the bird under a box, basket or blanket, and to assist in the rescue when it’s safe and if the caller is willing to transport the raptor to a meeting place.

Helping with a rescue is legal, said Hoskinson. However, because birds are federally protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, they cannot be kept for more than 48 hours.

“There are only three wild birds that aren’t protected by federal and state laws – pigeons, starlings and English sparrows,” said director of Foothills Animal Rescue Tresa Adams. “Yes, even vultures are protected,” she said.

When birds are released, it is not necessary for them to be in their original surroundings, said Houck. But sometimes that is arranged like the red-tailed hawk in Greer that was grounded because of a suspected gunshot wound. The people who called for the rescue noticed another red-tailed hawk nearby during the retrieval and in the weeks that followed. When the hawk completed its rehabilitation at Carolina Raptor Center, the recuperated bird was released in the same spot in case that was its mate.

To help continue saving birds, Pollow and her husband, Richard Mead, took over organizing Ride for Raptors after founder Rick Hane gave it up in 2008. The ride has upwards of 200 riders and raises $3,000 to $4,000 annually to fund medical care for rescues and ongoing care for birds that are permanent residents at Carolina Raptor Center.

“The heartwarming part of this work for me is people care enough to make the calls. They make such an effort to make sure the rescues happen. It’s cool,” said Pollow.

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