TN Family Visits Shot Eagle They Rescued, Now Cared for by American Eagle Foundation at Dollywood

AAA Note: Seeing Bald Eagles in flight in nature is a glorious sight. Perhaps the young eagle in the story below will join the other Bald Eagles who choose to winter over in Fayette County. It's almost time to start the bird watch- and we're ready to shoot them with our digital cameras!

(BUSINESS WIRE)--An American Bald Eagle shot in Tennessee earlier this year has a lot to be grateful for this Thanksgiving - it's flying again. But so does the family who rescued it.

In late March 2009, the immature female eagle suffered multiple wounds from a shotgun and was found and rescued by the Hornsby family in the Cumberland County area of Tennessee (Daysville).

Both the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency were notified by Cheryl Hornsby that she and her husband Jeff and son Jacob had found an injured eagle in their yard that could not fly. Those agencies responded and made sure the bird - now named “Cumberland” - was picked up from the Hornsby home and received proper initial treatment.

"My son threw a blanket over the eagle to keep it calm by covering its eyes and to catch it," said Cheryl Hornsby. "We fed it Special Kitty Ocean Perch brand cat food and the bird was hungry enough to eat the entire contents of the can. We also gave it some water."

On April 4th, a careful examination by veterinarians at the University of Tennessee Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Knoxville revealed that numerous steel shot fragments had fractured the eagle's left wing and also damaged its toe, tail, spine and shoulder. Many of those fragments could not be removed and still remain in the bird's body today.

After the doctors at UT provided initial emergency treatment to the eagle, it was then brought to the American Eagle Foundation's United States Eagle Center in Pigeon Forge (www.eagles.org) on April 8th for further rehabilitation. The eagle has been under the care of the AEF since that time going through various stages of recovery.

"We're very grateful to the Hornsby family for taking the action they did," said AEF president Al Cecere. "The eagle was seriously wounded and injured and would not be living today if they had not rescued it when they did."

Mrs. Hornsby contacted Mr. Cecere several months ago to ask if she and her family could possibly visit the eagle “Cumberland” at some point to see firsthand how it was doing. This week, as a special Thanksgiving gift, they were given that opportunity to see the bird for the first time since they found and rescued it 8 months ago.

"I have been trying to keep up with her progress," said Mrs. Hornsby. "This has been such a great joy for all of us and we are so thankful."

This eagle presently resides in a 150 foot long flight enclosure at the AEF bird facility, where it can exercise its wings and practice flying. Due to the bird having only 80 percent of normal range of motion in its left wing when it first came to the AEF facility, the initial prognosis of it returning to full flight was fair to poor.

However since that time, the eagle's wounds have healed and it has been flying increasingly better than it did when first placed in the flight enclosure. Now, the possibility of release back into the wild has increased - but no final determination will be made for a few more months.

The Cumberland County eagle shares the flight enclosure with two other bald eagles that were recently injured. One young eagle was found tangled in fishing line in the Bristol, TN area, causing significant damage to a wing. That immature bird is on the mend and already flying nicely. The AEF staff is still waiting for four new primary feathers to grow back in on the injured wing. The other bald eagle, an adult, suffered a broken leg, which has fully mended.

“If all three birds continue to heal, they may be ready for possible release in the spring of 2010 - the 25th Anniversary of the AEF,” said Cecere.

Several federal, state and private conservation groups, including the AEF, have joined together to offer a combined $5,000 reward for information leading to the conviction of the person(s) responsible for shooting the eagle from Cumberland County. To date, the shooter has not been found - but the reward still stands.

Bald Eagles are protected under federal law, and the poacher could face fines and up to a year in federal prison.

The public is urged to call the TWRA at 931-484-9571 if they can provide any information about who may have shot the bird.

“We were told so many times by people that we may never hear anything about her again,” said Hornsby. “But the American Eagle Foundation has proven them all wrong.”

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Majestic Eaglets

AAA Note: Perhaps the good citizens of Fayette County will have the honor of hosting these youngsters come winter. For several years, about a half dozen Bald Eagles have made Peachtree City their winter home.

Three sibling bald eaglets recently hatched in a nest inside Eagle Mountain Sanctuary at Dollywood. The eaglets and their non-releasable parents are cared for by the non-profit American Eagle Foundation. The birds will be released into the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains at thirteen weeks of age when they have grown to adult size.

Photo provided courtesy of American Eagle Foundation

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2009 Bald Eagle Surveys Show Rise in Nests, Young

AAG Note: Fayette County was blessed this year as a number of bald eagles wintered over in Peachtree City. These giant wonders of nature were absolutely gorgeous as they flew around the lake. We'll be on the watch for them again next year.

Bald eagle populations continue to soar in Georgia, with 2009 totals from the state Department of Natural Resources showing increases in nests and young fledged.

Checks done mainly by helicopter this winter and spring counted 124 occupied bald eagle nesting territories, 98 successful nests and 162 young fledged. That’s up from last year when 112 occupied territories, 85 successful nests – those in which eagles are raised to the point they can fly – and 134 eaglets were reported. The 2008 numbers marked a slight dip from the previous year.

Nongame program manager Jim Ozier of the DNR Wildlife Resources Division said Georgia’s eagle population has been gradually increasing for years. These iconic raptors, taken off the federal endangered/threatened species list in summer 2008, are nesting in suitable habitat across the state, taking advantage of reservoirs and ponds that offer their primary prey – fish.

“Thirteen (new) nests were documented this year,” including the first at Lake Blue Ridge, Ozier said.

The surveys led by Ozier, who has monitored Georgia’s bald eagles for two decades, are an example of the programs supported by Georgians who buy a wildlife conservation license plate or donate to the Give Wildlife a Chance state income tax checkoff. Both programs benefit the Wildlife Resources’ Nongame Conservation Section, which receives no state funds for its mission to help conserve Georgia wildlife not legally hunted, fished for or trapped, as well as rare plants and natural habitats in the state.

Bald eagles are one of more than 600 high-priority nongame animals and plants identified in the Georgia Wildlife Action Plan, a strategy guiding state conservation efforts. But even though eagles and their nests are big – nests average 5 feet wide – they can be hard to find.

Bald eagles typically use the same nest, often built in the tops of tall pine or cypress trees. But each year some established pairs build new ones. If the new nest is near the old, it is usually easy to find, Ozier said. But some nests are much farther away and more difficult to pinpoint.

Reports from the public can help. Georgians who see a bald eagle nest or two or more eagles together are encouraged to download the form at www.georgiawildlife.com (click “Conservation,” “Species of Concern,” “Bird Conservation” and then “Report Nesting Bald Eagles”). Send the completed form to Jim Ozier, jim.ozier@gadnr.org or Georgia Wildlife Resources Division, Nongame Conservation Section, 116 Rum Creek Drive, Forsyth, GA 31029.

When eaglets leave the nest, they are the same size as adults but dark brown, almost black. Bald eagles gain the characteristic white head and tail feathers at 4 to 5 years old

Conservation laws, restoration work and a ban on the pesticide DDT have helped the bald eagle recover from near-extinction through much of its range 40 years ago. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service took the species off the federally threatened list in August 2008. This American symbol and subject of one of Georgia’s nongame wildlife license plates is still protected under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, and other federal and state legislation.

Bald eagle nests numbered in the single digits in Georgia when Ozier started searching for them. Nesting territories steadily increased, then surged from the low 80s to 96 in 2006 and beyond 100 in recent years.

Nests are concentrated along the coast, but can be found across the state, usually near major rivers or lakes where the fish, waterbirds and even turtles that eagles eat are abundant.


BALD EAGLES at a glance

** Size: Adults can weigh 14 pounds, with 8-foot wingspans. Males are slightly smaller.

** Prey: Fish are a staple. Eagles also eat waterfowl, turtles, snakes, rabbits and other small animals.

** Mates: Eagles mate for life. They often use the same nest, adding to it each year. (Nests up to 10 feet wide and weighing a half-ton have been recorded.)

** Offspring: Pairs typically lay one to three eggs by December. The young fledge in three months and are on their own in about four.

** Long-lived: Bald eagles live up to 15-25 years in the wild, longer in captivity.

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Bald Eaglets Released Into Foothills of Great Smokies Named By Miley & Billy Ray Cyrus

BUSINESS WIRE --Two 14-week old bald eaglets named “Hope” and “Tennessee” by Hannah Montana TV stars Miley Cyrus and her father Billy Ray were released by the non-profit American Eagle Foundation (AEF) from an artificial nesting tower located on Douglas Lake in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains. A group of Miley’s fans was on hand to help set the eagles free.

“The birds flew majestically while discovering their newfound freedom right after the nesting tower door was opened by several of Miley’s East Tennessee fans,” said AEF founder and President Al Cecere. “This is yet another step in our efforts to fully bring back eagles to our nation’s lands, waterways and skies."

The young eagles named by the Cyruses were hatched from non-releasable parents earlier this spring at the AEF’s United States Eagle Center at the Dollywood family adventure park in Pigeon Forge, TN. Five other captive-hatched eaglets were also released.

A song titled “Wake Up America” appears on Miley’s new record album (“Breakout”) that expresses the singer’s feelings about protecting our Earth and America’s natural resources:

The Earth is calling out

I wanna learn

What it's all about

Everything I read

Is global warming,

Going green

Wake up America

We're all in this together

It's our home

So let's take care of it

To date, 313 captive-hatched and translocated bald eaglets have been released in Tennessee since the early 1980s - with 95 eaglets released at the Douglas Lake location.

There are presently an estimated 77 successful wild nests in Tennessee that fledged about 135 young last year. The state had no known occupied eagle nests in the early 1980s.

“Although the bald eagle was delisted from Endangered Species Act protection in June 2007, America’s living symbol isn’t out of the woods yet,” said Cecere. “The bird’s fight for future survival will be an on-going process."

According to the AEF, it will cost millions of dollars to monitor and protect eagle nests on private lands nationally for the remainder of this decade and beyond.

The conservation group hopes to raise an initial $10 million from the general public for its American Eagle Fund endowment by 2009 - to help monitor and protect the bald eagle for future generations.

A special United States Mint commemorative eagle coin set that went on sale in January 2008 has already raised over $6 million for the Fund, and could potentially raise over $10 million by the end of the year with the public’s support (www.usmint.gov). The coins celebrate the eagle’s successful recovery to America.

“It’s the responsibility of every American to participate in keeping this precious national treasure flying strong and free forever,” said Cecere.