Tamarack Wildlife Rehabilitation & Education Center

Common Sense(s) Lessons

With more than seven years volunteering, working and educating others about wildlife rehabilitation, I'm certain about one thing - every day spent working with wildlife is an opportunity to learn something new or have old lessons reinforced in a new way. In the following story , the lesson was about why I was taught not to wear bright colors, especially reds and oranges, when working with wildlife.

Earlier this year, Sue DeArment asked if I could help out one evening with a newly admitted bald eagle. The eagle had a dislocated wing and Sue needed to wrap the wing to the eagle's body; a two-person job on a large bird of prey. The wrap would help secure and support the wing until the bird could be transported to a veterinarian for evaluation. When I arrived, the Center's chores had been done, the lights dimmed, and the other patients in the sickroom were dozing for the night. Ready for a well deserved evening on the couch, Sue had kicked off her work shoes and put on comfy dark crimson slippers.

Sue carefully secured the wing, wrapping it to the eagle's body while I followed her instruction on lifting and holding the bird. To check that the wrap was on properly and not interfering with the eagle's ability to walk, Sue set the bird on the floor of the sickroom. Almost instantly, the eagle leapt upon Sue's slipper, grabbed hold with huge talons and stopped. Carefully, Sue dropped a sheet over the bird and slowly detached the talons from her slipper. Backing away, she removed the sheet - the eagle launched itself again at Sue's slippers. She kicked them off and the eagle pounced on the nearest one. Picking up the slipper in its beak again - it stopped. Its head cocked and body language expressed confusion. Dropping its worthless prey, the eagle tried for the other slipper with the same disappointing result. The color had signaled a juicy morsel for a very hungry eagle, but touch and taste had not confirmed.

Most experts agree the many bird species do not have a well developed sense of smell(turkey vultures being a notable exception). However, their senses of vision, hearing, touch, and taste are well developed and very important in hunting and eating. The bald eagle provided a vivid demonstration of how our senses function - it wasn't until he could touch and taste that he could determine that the slipper wasn't a chunk of venison. And I am reminded that "dressing for success" at a wildlife center is important for a variety of reasons!