Tamarack Wildlife Rehabilitation & Education Center

What's Happening at TWREC

We are happy to report that we have coverage for the summer to allow the center to be open from 8 a.m.- 4:30 p.m. on a daily basis, seven days a week. Other times are by appointment only. We have one temporary part time employee, one full time work study student, one intern for 3 weeks, and one student from Allegheny College for eight weeks, through The Davies Service Leadership Award, and one Bonner Leader (Allegheny College) for 300 hours.

Also there are several Eagle Scout projects in the works, for building a bat enclosure, and making modifications to existing outside enclosures.

Another Eagle Scout project was just completed by Shawn Yochim. He and his crew of help made pavers from the house to the Education Center, and to the mammal enclosures. Steps were also made for easier access over an embankment to the enclosures.

New walls will be put in the Education Center for Pierre, the Peregrine Falcon. The existing walls have suffered due to the birds excretions and scrubbing with bleach water on a weekly basis.

The addition of the flight building is in slow progress. Due to the wet weather last year, the ground which was leveled, was undermined by the amount of water. This will need to be redone. Seven of nineteen poles have been delivered. Once the ground is rebuilt& releveled, the poles put in, and tresses on, building will progress quickly. Due to the economy, the place we were to have dowels donated from, is no longer able to do so. This puts us back $1,200.00. A very disappointing setback. However, there always seems to be a way to find the finances or resources, with the help of our members and through fundraiser, it just takes a little longer.

Other factors that have had an impact on Tamarack Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Center, are the closing of most of the local bait stores, and rodent supplier.

It has been very difficult to obtain live fish to feed to waterfowl, such as Great Blue Herons, Grebes and Loons. Trips have had to be made to Erie to obtain food. This has created a difficult situation trying to arrive before closing hours, let alone gas pricing, and the quantities needed prior to the next purchase needed for keeping the animals alive. Unfortunately, we are not abe to raise our own fish, so many times we rely on fishermen for some fish. Most of the time we are in a bind.

Also, the person who has raised rodents for feed has quit. This not only affects us, but also the local pet stores. To order live and frozen rodents is very expensive. We are now in the process of trying to raise our own. This is another time consuming process. If the young are not removed on time, there is interbreeding which causes poor quality feeders, if not dead ones. We have rearranged our 2nd sickroom area to accommodated this. Cost increase for feedings per month, Great horned Owl $150 to $126, Red-Tailed Hawk $70 to $90, and Screech Owl $30 to 38, plus shipping and handling.

We also must raise brown, or dark mice. Most breeders who send live mice, send white mice. We certainly don't want our birds of prey attacking golf balls, thinking they are white mice! This has actually happened to other rehabilitators.