‘Freedom’ Takes Wing Over Connecticut Skies

 

The release went splendidly. It was a bittersweet experience watching this enormous bird take flight from my arms. There was something special about “Freedom” beyond the glamour associated with being a bald eagle. It was an honor and a privilege to rehabilitate her. We will miss her presence here at Wildlife In Crisis but we know she is where she is meant to be, wild and free.

––Dara Reid, director, Wildlife In Crisis

By Dottie Evans

A 3-year-old female bald eagle named “Freedom” was released November 7 at the Shepaug Dam, a Northeast Utilities hydroelectric power generating plant on the Housatonic River off River Road.

The dam and surrounding shoreline forest areas in Newtown and Southbury have become a critical habitat for endangered bald eagles in recent years. Between the winter months of December and March, as many as 60 eagles have been sighted at the dam, feeding on the fish they can easily pick out of the churning waters just below the spillway. In early spring, the bald eagles disperse and head north to breeding grounds in Massachusetts, Maine, Canada, and Nova Scotia.

In order to accommodate those who want to view the eagles, Northeast Utilities has constructed a viewing platform 1,000 feet from the place where the birds congregate to feed. The area is closely monitored by Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) rangers, and the numbers of visitors are strictly monitored so the birds will not be alarmed or disturbed.

Friday’s planned release was a carefully guarded event with very few onlookers or photographers allowed, according to Northeast Utilities senior engineer Gary Smollen who said the paramount consideration was “protecting the eagles.”

Dara Reid, spokesperson for Wildlife In Crisis, the Weston wild animal rehabilitation organization where the bird has been cared for during the past 15 months, said Thursday that the decision to limit onlookers was a mutual one.

“The eagle [believed to be a female] will already be under a great deal of stress from the process of getting to the site. We didn’t want to add to that. We very much hope she will be strong enough to find food on her own and join the other eagles.”

Even deciding upon a release date was difficult. Earlier plans were foiled by wet, rainy weather in October and by the remnants of Hurricane Isabel moving through the area in late September.

“It’s been chaotic trying to arrange for this, but we wanted to do it soon before the bad weather moved in,” said Mr Smollen, who oversees the Northeast Utilities facility.

“It is always a worry that a young eagle might be at risk, since eagles are very territorial. But this time of year, we’re hoping it will work out,” said Ms Reid.

Among the few people on hand to witness the release, aside from Wildlife In Crisis volunteers and utility officials, was Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who was recognized for his many years of dedicated service toward environmental preservation.

Keeping Company With A Bald Eagle

Wildlife In Crisis volunteers have been taking care of the young eagle since August of 2002, when it was discovered by fishermen at the nearby Saugatuck Reservoir. When first seen, it was suffering from an injured wing and appeared extremely emaciated. A wildlife ranger was called who captured it and brought it to the Weston facility.

It was Dara Reid, director of the rehabilitation facility, who watched the bird on a daily basis, made decisions about its care, and grew accustomed to its habits and behavior. Only lately, Ms Reid said, was it obvious that the time for release had come.

“She’s ready to go. With birds you never know, but we noticed she was becoming very restless in her cage –– doing things she hadn’t done before.”

To ensure that the eagle’s wing muscles would grow strong again, the volunteers built an enormous flight cage, 40 feet wide by 30 feet high by 60 feet long. Inside the cage they put potted plants, small trees, perches, and a recirculating pond. While the eagle was recovering, these features provided an interesting, natural environment for her explorations.

“She is a very mischievous, intelligent bird and she likes to be busy. We’d planted the pots six inches under the soil and she pulled them all out. But lately, we had noticed an increase in activity and that she was damaging her feathers flying about in the cage.”

The young eagle, which is still considered immature until the age of 5, was always playful, Ms Reid said, but she seemed to be growing upset and disturbed at being confined.

“We’ve become very attached, but we wanted the best for her. She’s as strong as we can make her, so we decided it was time to let her go.”

Ms Reid added that before the eagle was injured it had already been in the wild for at least one year, and had already migrated once.

“That’s the good news. Eagles have a high attrition rate so it was unusual for her already to have survived that long.”

She explained that the eagle’s name, “Freedom,” was chosen in honor of the 16 US soldiers killed in Iraq November 2, when their helicopter was shot down. One of the soldiers tragically killed was 20-year-old US Army Pfc. Anthony D’Agostino from Waterbury.

“She will be banded, and we hope she will join the other birds already congregating at the dam. Or perhaps she will fly back to the place where she came from.”

Wildlife In Crisis, located in Weston, is a nonprofit organization founded in 1989 that relies entirely on donations. It is run entirely by volunteers and accepts all species of native wildlife from hummingbirds to eagles, from turtles to raccoons. The organization will attempt to answer commonly asked questions about native wildlife. It is dedicated to habitat preservation and is also connected to a land trust. Wildlife In Crisis may be reached at PO Box 1246, Weston, CT 06883, by phone at 203-544-9913, or on the web at www.wildlifeincrisis.org.