The future of an eagle rescued in Ohio has been decided

By Damon Maloney

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    LORAIN, Ohio (WEWS) — Eagles are a regal bird that, over the decades, has fought back from near extinction.

In July, an injured eagle hobbled onto a front porch in Lorain not far from her nest at Lakeview Park South, where it lived with its mate and two eaglets. Locals refer to the bird as the Lorain Eagle. The bird was missing numerous feathers, which impacted its ability to fly.

News 5 spoke with Nikki Pieciak, who got help for the eagle.

She said at that time, “We were bound to determine that we weren’t going to leave her until somebody came and helped her.”

The eagle has spent several months at Back to The Wild in Castalia, Ohio. The wildlife rehabilitation and nature education center will soon be celebrating its 35th anniversary.

Mona Rutger is the center’s executive director. Her passion for animals and the outdoors began when she was a kid.

“It gives us a chance to talk about the natural world and how wonderful nature is and you know look around you – notice it,” Rutger said.

The center helps injured, orphaned, and displaced wildlife get a second lease on life. It takes in birds like owls and hawks, certain mammals and reptiles.

Rutger said most of the animals that come to them get released back into their natural habitats.

“I get just as thrilled as anybody, maybe even more, to see something in the wild, healthy and strong and free,” Rutger said.

Rutger and her team including, Alexa and Paige, had high hopes for the Lorain Eagle.

“She had a huge window of feathers missing, you know, like a whole big span of secondary feathers, which are really crucial to their flight. It gives them the lifts they need and maneuverability,” Rutger said.

Lorain resident Paul Schmidlin has taken thousands of photographs of the Lorain Eagle and her family. He also runs a Facebook Page dedicated to local eagles. He said he noticed the Lorain Eagle’s injury last winter, well before it was rescued.

“And she really, really worked hard, and the extensiveness of the damages continued to worsen throughout the summer,” Schmidlin said.

For months, the bird has lived in an outdoor enclosure at Back to The Wild, surrounded by other eagles in the center’s care.

I got to see the team do a checkup on her.

“Mona you’re here with you staff and what is it like to be so close to something so majestic?” I asked.

“You never get used to it. It doesn’t become old habit. Each time it’s like, ‘Oh my goodness,’” Rutger said. “But it’s also heart wrenching because this isn’t how you want to see a bald eagle you know.”

The eagle has had veterinarian visits. Some feathers have regrown, but several feathers haven’t come back in.

Rutger said it wasn’t a candidate for imping, a procedure that’s basically a feather transplant, because of permanent follicle damage. Rutger said illnesses like the West Nile virus can be to blame, but she said this bird’s injury appears to be caused by its coming into contact with powerlines.

“They’re flying around under a lot of wires and stuff,” Rutger said. “She must have, you know, collided with some power lines. And just spliced those right off.”

She said it’s something that occurs more often than one might think. Rutger showed me two eagles at the center that have been in her care for quite some time after running into power lines.

“One broke both shoulders- the male did,” Rutger said. “The female got electrocuted and lost one eye and she had so much damage in one of her wings that it burned the feathers and bones.”

After months of care, the Lorain Eagle’s future is becoming more apparent.

“Well, I think we’ve come to the conclusion… and she’s just in a situation where she could not survive in the wild,” Rutger said.

It’s a reality that’s emotional for caregivers and those who’ve watched the eagle from afar.

Rutger said she plans to apply for a permit with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources- Division of Wildlife to deem the bird “non-releasable” and make it an educational ambassador.

“They’re powerful educational tools that will benefit humans and wildlife everywhere,” Rutger said.

It’s a new flight course that Schmidlin looks forward to documenting.

“The people here Back to The Wild are the best place she could be,” he said.

Back to The Wild is a nonprofit that doesn’t take any government funding. Rutger invites the public to visit its website or Facebook page to learn more about its education programs, including onsite activities.

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