The Wildlife Center of Virginia, a leading teaching and research hospital for native wildlife, will release an adult Bald Eagle on Monday, March 9 at 1:30 p.m. at the Dick Cross Wildlife Management Area near South Hill, Virginia.         

Participating in the release will be Ed Clark, President and co-founder of the Wildlife Center.  Also expected to attend are staff from the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries [VDGIF] who helped in the rescue of this eagle, including Sergeant Robbie Everidge.  

On February 16, at about 7:30 a.m., the Bald Eagle was hit by a truck at milepost 17 on I-95.  Sergeant Everidge was called to the scene and found the bird, alive, on the side of the road.  The eagle escaped capture by flying off a bridge and into the Otter Dam swamp.  Sergeant Everidge returned to the site at about 4:30 p.m. and saw that the eagle was close to the same spot in the swamp.  He contacted VDGIF Conservation Police Officers John Rush and Brandon Woodruff and planned a rescue effort for the next morning.

Sergeant Robbie Everidge, photo courtesy of VDGIF

On February 17, Sergeant Everidge and CPOs Rush and Woodruff entered the swamp and successfully captured the eagle.  They borrowed a cage from the Greensville County Animal Control and, with an assist from volunteer transporter Clarke Brady, transported the eagle to the Center’s clinic in Waynesboro by shortly after noon.

Upon admission, the eagle was bright and alert, but had soft-tissue bruising, open wounds on the right thorax [chest], and superficial foot wounds – all consistent with a collision with a truck.  The bird was given fluids and treated with antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, and pain medication.  While radiographs found no broken bones, tests revealed elevated blood lead levels in the bird. The eagle was treated with a medication that binds to lead in the blood, allowing it to be excreted from the body through the kidneys. 

 The eagle responded well to treatment and was moved to a small outdoor pen on February 21.  By February 22, lead levels were within normal limits, and the eagle had gained weight.  On February 24, the Bald Eagle was moved to one of the Center’s 100-foot flight pens, where it has demonstrated that it is able to fly. 

“This eagle is a case study of what can be achieved through the cooperation of concerned citizens, state officials, and a non-profit organization,” according to Clark.   

Clark noted that speedy action probably helped save this eagle’s live.  “In animal medicine, as is true for humans, time is of the essence – quick medical intervention can make a huge difference,” Clark said.   “If this bird had spent much time on the ground – likely in some state of shock, unable to fly well, and with open wounds – its chances of survival would have decreased greatly.  Our thanks to the timely and determined help of the VDGIF staff.”

It is estimated that the Bald Eagle population of North America numbered about half a million before European settlement.  With the loss of habitat, shooting, and the effects of DDT and other pesticides, the U.S. eagle population plummeted. 

In 1977, there were fewer than 50 bald eagle nests in Virginia.  Today, the bald eagle population in Virginia is on the rebound.  There are now more than 500 active bald eagle nests in the Commonwealth. 

 Every year, between 2,000 and 3,000 animals – ranging from Bald Eagles to chipmunks – are brought to the Wildlife Center for care.  “The goal of the Center is to restore our patients to health and return as many as possible to the wild,” Clark said.  “At the Wildlife Center, we treat to release.”  

 The eagle being released on March 9 is one of nine Bald Eagles admitted thus far in 2009 to the Center.

 The Wildlife Center of Virginia is an internationally acclaimed teaching and research hospital for wildlife and conservation medicine.  Since its founding in 1982, the nonprofit Center has cared for more than 51.000 wild animals, representing 200 species of native birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians.  The Center’s public education programs share insights gained through the care of injured and orphaned wildlife, in hopes of reducing human damage to wildlife.  The Center trains veterinary and conservation professionals from all over the world and is actively involved in comprehensive wildlife health studies and the surveillance of emerging diseases. 

The Dick Cross Wildlife Management Area, operated by VDGIF, is located in Mecklenburg County, along the north side of the Roanoke River.  The area’s 1,400 acres include nearly 300 acres of broad flood plain, or bottomland, with numerous wetland impoundments, totaling about 165 acres, managed for waterfowl.  A number of Bald Eagles winter in and around the Management Area.  The Area is named for the late Dick Cross – former VDGIF Executive Director and wildlife biologist and a friend of the Wildlife Center.

RELEASE UPDATE:  Ed Clark reports that the eagle release on March 9 went very well — excellent weather, a good release site, and a strong bird.  The eagle initially flew out about 100 yards and perched in a tall tree.  After a short time — and after a car drove nearby — the bird took off and began circling.

Photo courtesy of Lisa Andrews, The South Hill Enterprise