Bald eagle makes its home at Lake Erie Nature & Science Center
Wildlife Director Dave Wolf gets ready to transfer the bald eagle to its new home.
[UPDATE: The bald eagle is being treated for a leg injury and its recovery and rehabilitation will likely keep it off public exhibit until spring 2013.]
The newest resident in the Wildlife Garden at Lake Erie Nature & Science Center in Bay Village is a rehabilitated adult bald eagle (Haliaeetus Leucocephalus) acquired from the Wildlife Center of Virginia.
Director of Wildlife Dave Wolf drove to Virginia to assure the safe transfer and journey of the eagle, which was determined to be non-releasable after several attempts at rehabilitation. Although a pronounced wing droop limits the eagle’s ability to sustain flight, it is otherwise healthy and successfully settling into its year-round, outdoor enclosure because its feather covering and internal physiology is perfectly adapted to endure Ohio’s summer heat and winter cold.
Since the eagle’s arrival on Nov. 13, hundreds of students, families and adult visitors have learned about the bald eagle’s unique standing as a successfully-recovered threatened and endangered species and symbol of American history.
Adults interested in how raptors (eagles and other birds of prey like falcons) contribute to and interact within our local habitat are invited to attend “Enraptured by Raptors,” the next installment in Lake Erie Nature & Science Center’s Second Nature Series for Lifelong Learners on Thursday, Dec. 13, from 7-8:30 p.m. Tickets are available by phone at 440-871-2900 or at the Center for $7 in advance and $10 on the day of program.
Lake Erie Nature & Science Center is located at 28728 Wolf Rd. in Bay Village. For more information, visit www.lensc.org or call 440-871-2900.
Kathleen Shields
Kathleen Shields is the Communications Specialist at Lake Erie Nature & Science Center.