DALLAS -- A North Texas rehabilitation hospital opened its doors to a rare patient earlier this month: an injured, 7-pound bald eagle in need of fish.
The Blackland Prairie Raptor Center is a conservation nonprofit located in Lucas, in northeast Collin County, that tends to wounded birds. Every once in a while, bald eagles will be admitted into the facility’s hospital for rehab, said Annamarie Saavedra, its executive director.
More than two weeks ago, Lorenzo Carbajal was fishing at Lake Tawakoni in East Texas when he heard an animal making noise in the distance. Carbajal made his way to the sound, and spotted an eagle entangled in fishing lines, flailing around in the water.
“I had to help because (the eagle) was really cold and really wet,” he said.
He and a few nearby park visitors went down to the water and tried to free the bird from the strings, but were unsuccessful in their efforts. Later, a game warden arrived at the park and brought in the eagle to the rehab center.
The eagle, which doctors estimate is around 2 ½ to 3-years old, was admitted into the hospital Feb. 3 with nicks and bruises, as well as a mild case of lead poisoning — which isn’t unusual for the species due to their diet, Saavedra noted.
Shortly after being admitted, the center put out a call on Facebook, asking for fishermen in the area to supply its newest patient’s diet of locally caught fish.
“We can never tell exactly how long one of our patients is going to stay in our hospital — treatment plans vary depending on the patients’ needs,” Saavedra said. “In this case, we just knew we needed fish, but we didn’t know how much, and we didn’t know how long we were going to have him in our care.”
The post received more than 300 shares and 70 comments. Within a few days, the center received at least 50 pounds of fish, which was much more than was expected.
“We had to stop accepting fish because we had so much,” Saavedra said, who added that the center was “grateful” for the response from the local community.
“It’s always incredibly heartwarming to see the community just care and be passionate about one of our patients,” she said. “It’s not every day that we can ask the community for that kind of thing.”
To nurse the eagle back to full health, veterinarians addressed internal issues found in its bloodwork and monitored its flying ability through special eagle flight cages, Saavedra said. When the eagle was ready, doctors moved it to the largest flight cage to ensure its readiness and test its strength.
The bald eagle, who was released back to Lake Tawakoni Thursday, also recovered, in part, from the community’s donations, Saavedra said.
“We have to feed the bird every day, and so the fish was part of its natural diet,” she said. “Having locally caught fish is ideal for situations like this, so the community was able to step in and help us fill that need.”
Are bald eagles common in North Texas?
Bald eagles aren’t uncommon to the region, but they haven’t been spotted as much recently, said BPRC’s education manager, Laura Johnson. The facility also aims to educate people about wildlife and the importance of preserving prairie lands.
“They’re really prevalent near the Red River area, but they are starting to make their way back here to North Texas,” Johnson said.
In recent years, residents have spotted eagles in Lake Lewisville, Lake Lavon and White Rock Lake — home to one iconic pair of birds, she said.
In addition, the conservation center has admitted at least three eagles over the last year and a half, Saavedra said.
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