Birds of prey are some of the most elegant and graceful creatures on the planet and were once seen as the kings of the ecosystem. Now the world has become a hostile environment for them, with danger around every corner.
Every day, birds are brought to Owl Moon Raptor Center having suffered from the effects of human development. Most of them were hit by cars, barely escaped the hands of hunters, or got stuck in man-made objects like barbed wire. Owl Moon is a non-profit that works to rehabilitate and release sick and injured birds back into their natural habitats along with educating the public on protecting these creatures.
Over the summer Elena Kuiper (she/her) gave her time to work with Owl Moon Raptor Center. She is a sophomore at the Institute of Applied Agriculture studying Sustainable Agriculture with the hopes to pursue Animal Science, Pre-Vet, and work in wildlife rescue for the rest of her life.
Kuiper started working with Owl Moon in March and quickly learned that working with wild animals wasn’t going to be an easy task. Kuiper had duties like preparing the live food, cleaning out the cages after moving birds, and giving them each their medications. This part of the job was pretty nasty but she got used to it in no time. She told me it was one of the coolest and grossest things she has ever done. Her favorite part of working with the birds was flight conditioning and physical therapy. Birds recovering from injuries to their wings would have to learn to fly all over again and Kuiper was there to work with them that whole time. “I’ve gained such a huge amount of love for these birds and it makes you angry that some people can be so cruel,” says Kuiper.
Kuiper learned that when working with wild animals you have to be quick to react: one wrong move can lead to injury to both you and the animal. They have to take action as soon as the injured birds are brought in because those first few hours are what will determine the animal's fate. Kuiper’s supervisor, Malia, said, “From the point of admission, it’s close to 30 percent survival. Raptors unfortunately have to be 100 percent to make it in the wild.” Some birds sadly may never recover enough to be released back into their natural environment.
Kuiper loved spending time with the other volunteers and the managers who were so passionate about the work they do. She will be able to take this experience with her when pursuing her dream of working with large cats in the future.
