Increasing Dakota Awareness & Education

This has been a very busy week for us at WINC, due in large part to our efforts to continue to reach out to the community and increase awareness of Dakota’s situation. We know our efforts are working, because we have been contacted by so many new people who have reached out to us: people who have just started following our blog & our facebook page, people who have now seen our flyers and heard about our search locally, and people who are becoming aware of Dakota from news stories and the internet. It is an amazing thing to see, just how many people have been touched by Dakota’s plight, and the awesome distances his story has traveled. We have been getting calls from as far away as Canada, from people who want to share information with us & help us in any way they are able, and to contribute ideas to our efforts to see Dakota home once again. It cannot be overstated how heartened we are for the continued well wishes and positive support we receive. If there has been any upside to this sad situation, it has been the constant stream of caring we have been blessed with. We are humbled by the generosity of spirit the community has for Dakota, and overwhelmed by how he continues to educate, even during this current situation.

As a part of our education and outreach efforts, we would like to remind everyone that during this difficult time for WINC, one of the things that is of the utmost importance to us is that we return the respect we have received. We are ever mindful that we want our impact on the community to be a positive one, and ever mindful that the example we set in our search methods allows us to achieve maximum impact with a minimum “footprint”. We are striving to be very respectful of the people who live in the neighborhoods we are searching in, and are therefore keeping our search parties small and quiet in nature. We are so very grateful for the opportunities we have been given to search on private property with permission, and wish to publicly thank everyone who has so graciously allowed us to continue searching on their land. We are also grateful that everyone who has offered to help us search has continued to contact WINC before acting alone, and has allowed us to take the lead on any organized searches. This in turn has allowed us to conduct ongoing searches with minimal disturbance to the community, and maximum respect to it.  No search parties organized by WINC will ever venture onto private property wihout permission.

We are also mindful of the impact our searches have on the environment, and mindful that we continue to fulfill our core mission of helping wildlife in need, and not creating any in the process by disturbing the existing balance. We have been very careful not to create nuisances, both by being selective of where we place our feeding stations, and not disturbing the patterns of existing wildlife in any of the areas we are searching. Above all else, we would never want our efforts in our search for Dakota to bring any harm to the existing wildlife in the areas we are searching. We take extreme care not to harass any wildlife in those areas, and to be respectful of their habitats & not disturb them. Again, we want to thank everyone who has chosen to help us to watch out for Dakota for the care they have also taken and continue to take, to always be respectful of the wildlife that lives in those areas. Though we have stated it in our poster, it bears repeating: if you spot a Great Horned Owl that you believe to be Dakota, please, please, PLEASE do not approach him or call to him.  Please watch him closely while being extremely quiet, and contact the Wildlife In Need Center immediately. Dakota will respond to his handlers, and may be frightened by people he does not already know and is comfortable with.  We would not want anyone to inadvertantly further traumatize Dakota, or unduly traumatize any other owl(s) in the area who might be mistaken for Dakota.

During this past week we have continued to hand out informational flyers during our daily foot searchs, and have followed up on many leads from people who have reported hearing owls in their area. Unfortunately, we still have not been successful in pinpointing Dakota's exact location. We have heard owl calls from time to time, but not always received responses that we could definitively identify as Dakota’s. We have made some minor changes to the locations of the feeding stations, but still have not seen any measurable evidence that he is visiting them. Even though it may seem obvious, one of the things that people sometimes forget is that, even if he is not catching live prey, Dakota will eat dead animals. And even if he is not visiting the feeding stations to do so, he may be finding other food in that manner. We remain optimistic that Dakota is eating on his own.

We also remain optimistic Dakota remains in the general area. There is a statistic on released owls that points to most of them staying in a 5-mile radius from the area they are released in. As we know the approximate area Dakota was in when he escaped his captors, we have a fairly good idea of the areas we need to be most watchful for him in. Additionally, part of that range for us includes both our current building and grounds, and our old building. We have had many people ask, and yes---we do search the premises around our old building on a regular basis, on the chance Dakota has found his way back to that area.

The most important thing that we want people to remember is, we have not given up on our efforts to locate Dakota. We absolutely believe he is out there, and we will absolutely continue to search for him, and continue to raise awareness of him throughout the community. The eyes and the ears of the local community are one of the greatest resources we have available to us.  We have know from the very beginning that this would not be an easy process, but we remain committed to bringing him home. He is such an important member of our family, we are not whole without him.


Please continue to help us to find Dakota by remaining observant and vigilant especially when you are in the Dousman/Hunter’s Lake area. We have an improved version of our original flyer available & attached to this blog for download. We've added some specific information about Dakota's behavior and habits that we hope will prove helpful in further increasing education & raising awareness of Dakota in the local community. As previously mentioned, we’d like to again invite everyone to please feel free to print out the picture of the flyer included with this blog and post it-----WITH PERMISSION = please do not post it or distribute it unless you have the expressed permission of any given property owner, business, school---etc. 
((Reminder: it is ILLEGAL to place flyers in mailboxes.))

Thank you for your continued support of Dakota, and of WINC. Please continue to keep the faith that he remains strong, and will be home with us again soon.




(Guest Blogger K.P.)

Dakota Update---11/22/11

Everyone has been so wonderful in being patient and allowing us to continue to focus our efforts on bringing Dakota home, and we are so very grateful for that.  Much of our current resources---in addition to continuing to provide constant care for our patients & continuing to keep our clinic properly staffed---are devoted to our recovery process, and continuing to evaluate that process & consult our resources within the rehab community.  It’s not always easy to have the additional resources to compile and publish daily updates on Dakota, and when we do provide updates, we want to make sure that we are giving you the most current and correct information.  Our sincere appreciation goes out to all of you for your continued patience, well-wishes, positive energy & prayers.  You are awesome.

Over the past weekend, staff went out multiple times and are pretty sure they heard Dakota on several occasions (tho he was not positively sighted).  This is still a very positive sign.  There are also now two feeding stations up.  Neither seem to have been visited yet, but staff will continue to check the feeding stations and continue to try to locate Dakota by calls at night.  We’re again asking everyone, please do not attempt to locate Dakota on your own. People he is not familiar with will frighten him (and, we want to again caution everyone about hunting season; it’s unsafe to be walking around the area we believe him to be in).  Thank you to everyone who’s been respectful of us & Dakota during this time.  The most important thing you can do for us is to please continue to keep Dakota in your hearts & have faith, and continue to be patient….this is not an easy process, and it is not going to be a quick process.  But we remain very optimistic, and are working hard to bring Dakota home.

Additional positives of our current search include the fact that we are still actively and regularly hearing 2 Great Horned Owls in the area we believe Dakota to be in.  Staff will be moving one of the feeding stations down into a lower area where we believe he has settled down in to get away from the wind (Dakota does not like the wind or rain).  Although he may be eating on his own (and we of course absolutely hope that he is), if he is not, he may be just starting to get hungry.  The most positive aspect of his current feeding situation is that Dakota was in great condition when he was taken.  He is healthy, strong, in excellent feather, and was extremely well-fed.  The extreme cold weather has not yet reached us, and that will allow him to further conserve his energy & bulk.  Because of these factors, we are able to be very grateful that we are blessed with the time and resources to continue to try and lure him in without further traumatizing him.  These are all very hopeful and positive assets!

Thank you all again for caring so much about Dakota.  It is so heartening to us that there is so much love in the community for him, and that he has—and continues—to touch so many lives.  Please continue to remain patient and ever hopeful that we will have him home again soon.  We will do our very best to provide regular updates, when we have developments to report.

(Guest blogger K.P.)

Updates---

Our latest updates regarding our attempts to lure Dakota to the feeding station we have set up are as follows:

Thursday Nov 17

The feeding station was checked on Thursday morning, and all of the mice we had offered were still there. Staff did some calling and walking in that area, but heard only crows.  There were no significant signs that any other animals had visited the feeding station.

Friday Nov 18

The fresh mice put out at the feeding station the night before remained untouched this morning.  Some faint hooting was heard, but Dakota was not sighted.  Several dogs could be heard barking in that area, which made it difficult to determine which direction the hooting was coming from.

Staff is continuing to visit the feeding station and the area nearby on a regular basis each day.  Because we believe we have sighted and know we have shared vocalizations with Dakota in that area, we continue to remain hopeful that we will be successful in luring Dakota down from the trees to the feeding station, and that we will be able to see evidence he’s in that area on the trailcam that the homeowners who are assisting us are monitoring.  If we have any significant updates regarding our progress in these areas, we will post an update on the blog and/or our facebook page.


Thank you all again for the tremendous support you have shown and continue to show the center.  Please continue to join us in praying for the best possible outcome for Dakota---that he is back home once again with his family at WINC.  We miss him terribly, more than words can express.  Your positive energy and well-wishes mean the world to us right now.

Additionally, we wanted to let everyone following Dakota’s situation know, we appreciate the concern that has been expressed regarding the security of the grounds and the building at the current WINC location.  As always, our foremost concern is for the safety & well-being of the animals we treat and house at the center, and for the staff and volunteers who spend such a substantial portion of their time caring for those animals.

WINC is looking at increased security measures in light of our recent break in and theft of Dakota.  Because we are on UW-W property, we are working directly with the university system to discuss ways to increase security for the property in general. Our original plans for the building and our compound was to install security cameras & also use the same camera system to put cameras on patients and educational animals. Ultimately, we would like to be able to set up monitors in the public “Gathering” educational room so that visitors can see the animals, without disturbing the animals. These cameras would also help Animal Care staff evaluate and monitor patients by watching them when the animals don’t know they are being observed (with the hope that the animals would behave and move about as they normally would, without the added stress of human interaction). Winter weather this last year caused construction delays and increased costs for the building, so the camera project had to be put off until we can raise sufficient money to complete it.   We remain focused on continuing to secure adequate funding for that camera system, as well as for additional lighting, and also some physical changes to the building itself to increase security now. We have been asked repeatedly by our supporters and the public if there are ways in which they can help, and we are accepting donations from anyone who wishes to help us meet our goals with this project.  Every donation we receive helps us in our greater goal of providing care and comfort to the animals we treat.

For obvious reasons, it wouldn’t be in the center’s best interests to go into specifics on our blog or our facebook page of the exact details of every measure we are taking to add to the center’s security, because we would not want any other intruders to know what they might face if they come here. However…..one suggestion has been to deploy “Daphne”, our Educational Muscovy Duck, to patrol the clinic at night – anyone who knows Daphne knows she would make her presence known to any potential intruders J

(Guest bloggers L.R. & K.P.)

A Hopeful Progress Report

We wanted to check in again & update everyone on our progress in our search for Dakota.  

Search parties were out all day and early evening Tuesday, south of Hunters Lake/Dousman. We had several sightings and vocalizations. We’re secure in our belief that Dakota is in that area, as he has responded to Leslie’s voice several times and we recognize some of his “special” vocalizations. We were confused initially by sightings and vocalizations that seemed to be in different areas, sometimes at the same time. We now feel there are 2-3 owls other than Dakota in the area: a youngster from this year who makes begging cries for food when staff hoots, and 1 or 2 adults who are probably its parents.

We’ve had so many offers of search help, and want to again express how very grateful we are for the kindness and caring of everyone who has been touched by Dakota's plight. After several searches over the past few days, staff has decided that the best approach is to just attempt recovery with staff members, who Dakota is the most familiar with and comfortable around. We are also very mindful that we don’t want to lose our permission to search on these private properties by becoming a nuisance.  We think our best chance of recovery is with people Dakota knows well, especially since he is so traumatized.  We don’ t want anyone not familiar with (or familiar to) Dakota to try to grab him and be inadvertently hurt, or further scare Dakota. So at this time, we would ask that everyone (including our Animal Care Volunteers) stop going to this area, and not call or look for Dakota. If our staff members are the only ones calling for him, he is more likely to come to staff. But we want to again express how very grateful we are for all of the help we have already received and all of your generous offers.  We are blessed to be surrounded by so many people who care so greatly about Dakota, and bringing him home.

We did want to additionally remind everyone, in the further interest of public safety: deer gun season starts this Saturday, and there are several deer/tree stands in the woods where Dakota is staying. It’s too dangerous for any one of us to be moving in the woods even with blaze orange, and we need to respect the hunter’s rights.  But one house nearest to Dakota has generously agreed to let us use their yard as a feeding station & set up their trail cam on it. Even though owls in the wild do not eat every single day, without likely having eaten for several days now, Dakota is going to be getting very hungry. Staff is going to call from that feeding station starting Wed afternoon/night to draw Dakota to that area which we can safely access during hunting. Once Dakota starts feeding there, we think he may come to us, or we can utilize raptor traps.

As always, we simply cannot thank everyone enough for their kind wishes and help. We are especially grateful to the people who reported the Facebook page to the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department, and to us. That was the tip that led to the arrests, and to the information on Dakota’s location. I know some of the people I talked to wanted to be anonymous because they were worried about retribution from these suspects and their friends. It was courageous of them to report the information.  

Thank you all for caring about Dakota, and please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.  All of the positive energy everyone has been sending our way is so very, very appreciated.


(Guest Bloggers L.R. & K.P.)

*** ALERT = Important, Please Read ASAP ***

The Wildlife In Need Center is a small non-profit 501c3 organization that offers free medical care to orphaned and injured wildlife with the intent to release back to the wild.

Last night on November 12th, someone broke into our outdoor compound and three of our outdoor cages.  One of the cages housed our main animal ambassador, Dakota, a great horned owl.   Dakota was taken by the thieves.

Dakota is 11 years old and has lived in captivity all but the beginning of his life. Someone kidnapped him as an infant, prior to his coming into our care. He is fully imprinted on humans and can not fend for himself or hunt for food on his own.

Dakota has reached approximately 80,000 people in his educating career not including those through the media via the newspapers and TV. He appears at over 100 programs a year making an impact on girl and boy scout troops, adult charitable organizations, schools, senior citizen facilities and special needs groups.

PLEASE:  if you see or find a great horned owl with jesses (leather straps that would be dangling from his legs), or see an owl that is acting very friendly please contact the Wildlife in Need Center at 262-965-3090, your local humane society, or the Waukesha County Sheriff’s department who is investigating this theft.

Many children and adults have already planned their year end holiday celebrations around Dakota, and his message has always been to promote the positive things that the Wildlife In Need Center does for wildlife and the people that live with them.

Thank you for any information or help that you can provide,
to bring Dakota back home to us.

A Tale Of Two Opossums

 
Being a licensed wildlife rehabilitator makes you look at your surroundings in a different way than most people. When my husband and I drive anywhere, one of the things we are always looking for is good patches of dandelion greens to pick for the many cottontails we rehabilitate each year and the other being any injured animals that may need our help. One animal specifically we notice are any dead opossums because anyone of them could be a mom with babies still alive in her pouch. As the only marsupial in North America, mom opossums carry their young with them in their pouch for a number of weeks. They can have two sets of babies each season, one in spring and one in fall. That is why between April and October it is so important to check any dead opossums you see on the road (where it is safe to stop and check).

So the story goes that we are always on the lookout. On September 11th we found a great patch of dandelion greens in Ottawa. The following Tuesday morning my husband went back there for more greens and saw a squashed mamma opossum (he could tell because there were scattered dead little ones on the road). To keep anyone who would be grateful for the free meal from being in the way of traffic, he dragged her way off the road and started picking greens. After just a little while he started thinking; he’d seen her dead and all the little ones but didn't actually check her pouch. So, back he went to where he had dragged her and sure enough - one little guy was still hanging on - ice cold but alive. He brought him home, weighed him and tucked him into a box on heat to warm up.

That night, I had promised to release some orphaned cottontails in a friend’s yard in the town of Waukesha, so after work we packed them up and hurried over there. All went well with the release, but now it was almost 7pm, getting dark, and we need greens again for overnight and morning for the bunnies that were still at home. We wondered where to go - look around and waste time, or go back to Ottawa, which takes time to drive to, but where we’d be assured of abundant greens. We decided Ottawa was the best choice, so off we went. I started picking down the road one way and him the other. A little later he came over and said he thought he heard something but wasn't sure. I came over by where he was picking and listened but heard nothing. Then, a little sound, and nothing again. We didn't want to walk around for fear of stepping on any little ones, and needless to say, by now it was getting dark and we really had to keep picking greens. So I got down to ground level and started making mamma opossum sounds and my husband got down and began to make baby opossum sounds. Sure enough, in just two seconds we hear another little baby. He'd been out there all that time and was cold as ice, but we found him and as of this writing, he and his brother are doing really well.

So, it just goes to show you, if take the extra time you may be able to help save a life.

Guest Blogger N.M.

New Nest, Same Story

So you think you’ve found a baby bird…



photo by LMB

The first question to ask is this really a baby bird or is it a small adult bird?

The second question is what was the bird doing before you discovered it and what has it been doing since? Also note whether or not any injuries are obvious.

It may seem like baby birds are a product of spring, but here in Wisconsin we have several species of songbirds that nest later in the season and also some that nest several times throughout the season. Just because it’s July doesn’t mean baby bird season has stopped here at the Wildlife In Need Center!

So, what do you do now that you’ve found a baby bird?

Baby birds that still have lots of pink skin showing and whose feathers are soft and fuzzy or nonexistent are called nestlings. Nestlings are babies that should be in the nest but may fall out due to weather, predators, or other forces. Baby birds that don’t have any obvious injuries should first be warmed up to body temperature under a lamp, on a heating pad, or in your hand before being renested. Those that can be replaced in their original nest should be. In cases where the nest has been destroyed or is too high to reach the baby can be replaced in a substitute nest. A substitute nest can be made of a wicker basket, hanging plant basket or any plastic container with drainage holes poked into it. If using a plastic container be sure to line it with dried grasses, sticks or leaves so that it isn’t slippery. Hang your substitute nest at least 4-6 feet off the ground so it is out of easy reach of neighborhood pets and kids and within hearing distance (less than 12 feet) of the original nest. Don’t feed the baby; it should be hungry and peep because of it – that noise alerts the parents to where it is and they will feed it as well as any siblings in the nest.

Fledglings are babies that are old enough to leave the nest. They spend a couple of days hopping around the ground and making buzz flights an inch or two above the ground a foot or two at a time. That is how they learn to fly and build up their strength; activities they can’t do in a nest. Their parents continue to feed them on the ground but don’t stay with the baby at all times. Fledglings are mostly feathered, with wing feathers and at least a start of tail feathers, but may still have a bit of baby fluff here and there. Babies at this stage should be left alone and monitored from a distance.

If you have any further questions or you feel that the baby bird you’ve found may be injured please contact your nearest wildlife rehabilitator as soon as possible.

Sand Hill Crane Phenomenon!

As many of you know we recently have moved to a new location.  One thing you might not know is that the Wildlife in Need Center has an ongoing tradition with the majestic bird, the sand hill crane.  Our first patient ever was an injured sand hill crane.  And from then our center began to flourish every year with helping wildlife.  It was a happy coincidence that we chose this image as the center piece to our memorable logo.  

On Monday June 27, our new center officially opened, and we were greeted once again with non other than another sand hill crane.  What a coincidence.  This little fellow had his parents scared away by a dog and was thus left alone.  The people who found the crane then were told to make sure to leave the baby out, but sadly the parents never came back.  When brought into the center, it was clear that there were significant injuries to the bird.  Chelsea Matson, one of our Animal Rehabilitators, thought that when she first saw him it was in critical condition, (labored breathing, cold, and skinny) almost dead at that point.  After examining the bird, it appeared to have a spinal injury and was also very dehydrated.    

Our little baby sand hill crane is doing better and eating many worms a day. 

Luckily by the end of the day with some TLC it had appeared to perk up a bit.  By next morning he was standing all on his own!  The baby sand hill crane proved to be a great phenomenon and let’s us believe that our future is bright at our new location.   

For those of you who want to visit the Wildlife In Need Center our office hours are 9am-5pm, seven days a week.  The new Wildlife In Need Center is located at W349 S1480 S. Waterville Rd. Suite B, Oconomowoc, WI. Our new phone number is 262-965-3090.

Guest Blogger  JH    

Notice!

The Wildlife In Need Center is moving to its new home!

After several years of searching, rasing funds and support, and negotiating leases, our more efficient, more green, more public-friendly facility will be opening on Monday, June 27th.

To accomodate for the moving process, the Center will not be accepting calls for phone counseling, nor will we be accepting patients to our clinic on:

Thursday, June 23rd

Friday, June 24th

Saturday, June 25th 

Sunday, June 26th

Click here for links to other area resources that can be of assistance if you've found an animal that you think needs help.

We will open the doors at our new facility at W349 S1480 S. Waterville Road Suite B on
Monday, June 27th.
Please note that our new phone number will be (262) 965-3090

Please Help! : Oconomowoc Duck

For the past week calls have been flooding into both the Wildlife In Need Center as well as the Oconomowoc Police Department regarding a male Mallard duck with reportedly an arrow or dart bisecting his upper neck and/or head area.

Regrettably, both those who have reported sighting the duck as well as those who have gone to the area in efforts to help the duck have not had luck in getting close enough to contain it to bring it in for care.

If you know anything about the incident or individual who inflicted this upon an innocent animal please contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services at 612-713-5360. According to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, it is ruled that all migratory birds and their parts (including their eggs, nests, and feathers) are completely protected. (16 U.S.C. 703, more in detail go to http://www.fws.gov/laws/lawsdigest/migtrea.html ) Lastly, P.L. 105-312 also revised the law to permit the fine for misdemeanor convictions under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to be up to $15,000, rather than $5,000.

If you encounter the duck; try to stay calm when you move toward it. If you can get close enough the best thing to do is to gently toss a sheet or light towel over as much of him as you can. Birds are more docile when they cannot see. However, it is apparent that with his condition it may not be possible to cover the head completely. Once covered, softly tug on the edges of the sheet to cinch them together and try to nudge him into a box or container as tenderly as possible.

The Wildlife In Need Center’s office is staffed from 9AM to 5PM seven days a week including all of the summer holidays. If you have any information on this duck or are willing and able to assist in his capture please contact us at (262) 968-5075. The Wildlife In Need Center is dedicated to providing wildlife rehabilitation to Wisconsin wildlife with the intent to release back to their native habitat, conduct research designed to further the positive impact of rehabilitation, and provide quality community education programs and services. On Monday, June 27th, the new Wildlife In Need Center will be open for business at its new location at W349 S1480 Suite B South Waterville Rd, Oconomowoc, WI 53066. Thank you for caring!

 

Guest Blogger L.M.B.

Hung Up

The other day we received a phone call from a gentleman who claimed that while hiking the woods behind his home he and his children had seen a hawk dangling from a tree by one leg. He hadn’t been able to get close enough to tell if there was something tangled up on the leg or what it could be which made the assessment of the situation much more difficult.

He described that it was fairly wooded in and the ground was quite moist from the freezing and thawing streak we had been experiencing. And the bird was several feet from the tree trunk and 15 to 20 feet above the ground. I was at a loss. Even in the winter we are often too busy to send a staff member out for a rescue, and rely on volunteers to assist us with these situations. But how was I going to pin-point a volunteer able to attempt this feat?

Right away we contacted our volunteers who specialize in baby owl re-nesting since they have the equipment needed to climb high trees to put owlets back into their nests. When one finally notified us that he would be available I contacted the caller back to get an update on the situation.

The story gets interesting at this point because the children in the family reported that the hawk had by this point been able to right itself onto the branch but still no one had been able to get a good enough view to discern what, if anything, had caused the bird to be tangled up and hanging from the tree. They suggested that it had been hanging of it’s own accord by its talons, but this is not a normal behavior for hawks so I was still very concerned that the bird was wedded to the tree somehow.

We had a volunteer who wasn’t experienced in owl re-nesting, but who happened to live close by, go out to the site to visit with the callers and see if he could get any more information on the birds (another bird, presumably a mate, had shown up on the scene at this point). When he called back and informed us that not only had both birds “flown the coop” but that he had been shown the pictures taken when the bird was first sighted and it appeared that it had been hanging by its talon; everyone was shocked.

It didn’t take long before someone postulated that there was really no reason to be confused by the situation because there was a simple answer that no one had yet thought of…

It may seem cold and frigid to most of us, but for our wild neighbors love is in the air. Squirrels are performing acrobatics in the trees, the groundhogs are starting to stir in their burrows, and the owls and hawks are starting to seek out their mates and claim their nesting territories. I’ve never seen, but have heard, that when hawks are courting they can be witnessed doing some pretty amazing stunts like grasping talons and falling out of the sky. I’ve heard it described as appearing as though they are “fighting.”

A face only a mother Red-tail could love???

What likely happened, and this really is the best way this story could’ve ended, is that during one of this pairs’ “stunts” one of the hawks lost control and fell into the tree, perhaps grasping the limb to keep from continuing to the ground. We don’t know how long the hawk was there before the family discovered it, perhaps it was a coincidence that they happened along just after it occurred. Once the bird, with its amazing agility, was able to right itself it probably just needed a few moments for the shock to wear off, with its mate there ready to lead it off again. We are VERY glad that there wasn’t anything hanging the bird up and wish these two a happy and successful year. For those poor birds who DO get caught up on wire, string and other debris left behind by humans please keep the following in mind:

• Nets for outdoor games should always be taken in or down when not in use
• Fishing line, especially with lures or bait still attached, should never be left behind
• Kite strings and other types of strings should always be wound up and tied off before discarding