Clinic Case Updates
Lindbergh
Case X-468
Transmitter 2191
General Information
Species: Bald Eagle
Date Admitted: 9/19/97
Recovered From: Rogers
State: Minnesota
Sex: Unknown
This mature bald eagle was found along a roadside in Rogers, Minn., in early September 1997. He was eating carrion along the road, not uncommon for a bald eagle, but was weak and unable to fly. The eagle had severely swollen leg and foot. The middle toe on the left foot was nonfunctional . Several contusions in his lungs indicated some kind of trauma, perhaps hit by a car. He showed no signs of lead poisoning.
It was discovered that the swelling was due to an infection. An antibiotic regime and various theraputic bandaging techniques, helped to reduce the swelling. It is a constant battle to keep pressure off the swollen leg without causing stiffness and soreness in the good leg that compensates for the bad leg in supporting the eagle. Even though the toe remained nonfunctional, the left leg and foot eventually healed enough to start some flight excercise with functional landing gear (healthy legs and feet).
Outdoor flight exercises began in earnest in March - the flight crew noting in clinic records that he "started with hops and some flapping - by the end he got off the ground and flew 30-40 ft. several times." After about six weeks of steadily gaining altitude and distance, improving turns, and building up endurance through flight exercise, it was time for release.
On May13, 1998,
Raptor Center staff fitted this eagle with a 95 gram satellite telemetry unit.
After anesthetizing the eagle in our clinic, transmitter 2191
was affixed to the bird in a "backpack" type of configuration using
nylon/Teflon straps which will eventually decompose and fall away if the eagle
is not live trapped and refitted with a new transmitter before this ones battery
fails. The satellite transmitter has enough battery power to last for approximately
24 months.
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| Lindbergh gets his transmitter put on while under anesthesia. | ||
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| Clinic Coordinator Lori Arent and technician Jane Goggin imp in a missing tail feather. | ||
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Hooded and ready to go, Lindbergh arrives at Indian Mound Park to an awaiting crowd of wellwishers from Dayton's Bluff Elementary School. Leuc, an education eagle from The Raptor Center, is there along with education staff to give more information about bald eagles and Eagle Track! |
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| Jane hands Lindbergh over to Brian Kernohan, a Boise Cascade wildlife biologist. Everyone counts to three and Brian releases Lindbergh the eagle. Lindbergh flys to the nearest tree to survey the new landscape! | ||
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Update: May 18, 1998
The Raptor Center and Boise Cascade will release a third eagle, "Lucky Lindy," as a part of the Eagle Track Study on May 20 along the St. Paul's Indian Mounds Park.Lucky Lindy's satellite tracking data will replace Lindbergh's data.
After his promising released on Friday, Lindbergh, Eagle Track's second eagle, was found walking around a railroad yard beneath the bluffs near where he was released, and was caught up by Raptor Center biologists after Friday's storm. Despite previous successful practice flights the week before, Lindbergh was seen sitting atop a small dirt pile and refused to fly above 4-5 ft. when caught. Nothing obviously wrong has been found with Lindbergh, and he is being monitored and retested back at The Raptor Center .
It's important to the overall study to continue to collect data on released eagles, so another eagle, case Y-059 from Luck, Wisconsin, has been test flown and ready to go! Transmitter 2191, removed from Lindbergh, was attached to Lucky Lindy on May 18, 1998. Lucky Lindy will be test flown on May 19 and released in Indian Mound Park in St. Paul at 10:30 a.m. on May 20, 1998.
Update, May 29, 1998
After an extensive evaluation of Lindbergh's condition, it was determined that he was ready for his second release. Nothing obvious was determined as a problem for his unwillingness to fly after his first release, other than the possibility of heat exhaustion and or stress from the storm. As soon as he was test flown at The Raptor Center, Lindbergh took off with such power that he caused our technician to step backwards and accidentally step in to a loop of his tether . Lindbergh's tether pulled her off balance and she fell on her heel which caused her to dislocate her ankle and break both fibia and tibia upon landing. Lindbergh, of course, kept flying beautifully.
As Lindbergh was scheduled to be release yet again and Jane, our technician has since had surgery is still rehabilitating in a full leg cast with crutches.
On May 27, Lindbergh was released at Indian Mounds Park by Dr. Janette Ackermann,our veterinary resident of three years.
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ALL OF US WISH HIM WELL!
What's Inside | ||
