2 eagles found injured; 1 deceased

CRAWFORDSVILLE - Instead of the quiet Christmas she had planned, animal handler Jean Fitzgerald found herself with the lives of two American Bald Eagles resting solely on her actions.

A member of the Southeast Iowa Wildlife Rescue Alliance and a zoologist by trade, Fitzgerald regularly finds herself being called by area law enforcement when assistance is needed with a wild animal. Shortly after noon Tuesday, Washington County Sheriff's deputies called her to report 'an eagle” was injured in a field at 305th Street and Yucca Avenue in Crawfordsville. Fitzgerald loaded an animal carrier in her vehicle and with friend and fellow animal rehabilitator Janet Borsdorf she headed to Crawfordsville.

'I don't particularly do birds, but I have been doing wildlife rehabilitation for 15 or 20 years,” Fitzgerald said.

On arrival, she found there were three eagles and two opossums. The opossums and one eagle were deceased. the other two eagles were down. Fitzgerald described the two live eagles as being disoriented and unable to fly. She also said they weren't aggressive when the animal handlers captured them.

For large birds of prey, Fitzgerald said a net with a long pole is used. Two deputies on scene assisted in capturing the eagles. The group worked to place the net over the head of the birds, then control the feet. Fitzgerald described the talons as like 'having a fistful of knives.”

The largest problem Fitzgerald had was she thought there was only one eagle and had only brought one carrier. The eagles were taken back to Fitzgerald's home in Wellman, with Borsdorf carrying one of the eagles in her lap wrapped in a sweater.

Once in Wellman, another problem arose when Fitzgerald was trying to find a rehabilitation center for the birds. With the Christmas holiday, many places were closed and it was difficult to find anyone available.

'We took them to a better facility with the proper licensing and immediate access to a veterinarian,” Fitzgerald said.

The closest facility meeting those requirements was Wildthunder Wildlife and Animal Rehabilitation and Sanctuary in Independence. Owner and operator Tracy Belle said the eagles are being treated. The birds are being given fluids to flush out their systems and being hand fed.

'As of (Wednesday) night at about 2 a.m. they appear to be doing much better,” Belle said. 'We still have to get them through this initial crisis.”

If the birds recover, Belle said they will be released into the wild. She said where they will be released depends on where their final rehabilitation is.

Belle said it still is too early to know if the eagles will recover. She traveled to Washington County on Wednesday to collect the dead eagle and dead opossums, saying she plans to perform a blood toxicology screening. Belle said it isn't confirmed, but the eagles appear to have ingested some form of toxin.

Wildthunder is a nonprofit animal rehabilitation center that is state and federally licensed to rehabilitate animals and a state licensed wildlife shelter.

Fitzgerald said injuries among large birds tend to be seasonal. It usually happens when such birds travel through the area in large numbers. She sees plenty during this time of year when the younger birds that aren't very good at hunting are reported unable to fly because they are starving. She said people finding an injured bird should contact the Washington County Sheriff's office. She also warned large birds of prey are dangerous and unless people are specially trained, they should not attempt to handle one of these birds.