WSU Vets Return Eagle To Wild Young Raptor Was Nearly Electrocuted After Landing On A Power Line

It took only a few faltering flaps of its newly repaired wings for the young raptor to take flight.

Just three months earlier, though, the bald eagle nearly had been electrocuted after landing on a power line a few miles from town. The downed bird later was discovered by Colin Mears and his 15-year-old son, Joshua, who were out feeding deer on what the elder Mears called “good-deed day.”

Father and son realized the bird was injured after watching its repeated, but unsuccessful, attempts to take off.

The Mears called authorities. Within a few days, the eagle was in the care of the veterinarians and students at the College of Veterinary Medicine at Washington State University.

Minor surgery repaired the hole burned into the bird’s left wing. Then came rehabilitation. For the past month, WSU students have tethered the bird with nylon and allowed him to fly 200 to 300 yards a few times a day in preparation for release.

On April 10, the eagle was brought back to the Mears’ farm for its release. Most rehabilitated birds are returned to the location in which they are found.

The 1-year-old eagle sat quietly in the arms of Steven Sweeney, the veterinarian charged with its recovery, as Sweeney explained to about 15 students, neighbors and journalists what lies ahead for the bird.

The eagle released an excited, throaty chirp - much like the croak of a frog - when Sweeney mentioned the bird might return to Canada, where most of the Northwest’s bald eagles spend the winter.

Sweeney conferred with his students as to the best takeoff site for the raptor as he carried the 10-pound eagle to the edge of the Yakima River. The eagle wore a hood over its head and soft, cloth bandages covered its wings to prevent injury from a metal cage during its trip back to Mabton.

Finally, atop a gently sloping hill that slowly descended through wind-blown brush to the water’s edge, the hood was removed. The bird released a louder staccato chuckle.

After a toss into the air by Sweeney, the bird spread its wings, laboring only a few times to do so as it flew sideways along the river.

Flapping more furiously, the eagle dipped, hovering above yellow tufts of grass. Flying low yet gracefully, the bird made its way to a barren tree about a quarter mile away.

“He’s doing real good,” said WSU sophomore Matt Burkett, 20, one of six students who helped rehabilitate the eagle. Because the eagle’s exercise flights were so limited, Burkett said no one knew how far or how well the newly released bird would fly.

Students and teachers at WSU rehabilitate 75 to 100 birds of prey a year, Sweeney said. Only about half the birds recover well enough to be released.

“For us, this is the big payback, the gratification. It’s really nice to release the bird back into its habitat,” Sweeney said.

Most eagles live about 10 to 12 years in the wild, Sweeney said, though they can survive up to 50 years in captivity.

With the Yakima River flowing nearby and plenty of good perching trees around the area, Sweeney believes the eagle will have a good home should it decide to stay in the Yakima Valley.

“Each individual bird is going to determine its own destiny,” he said.