Humans have been involved with Jesse the Falcon's life in ways both bad and good.
On Nov. 20 a large trash receptacle arrived at the Wildlife In Need Center in Oconomowoc; inside the receptacle was a Peregrine Falcon that had been rescued from the side of the road. The injury probably was a gunshot wound.
That healed well through care at the center, but her initial release had to be postponed due to some damaged feathers. She is now on her way to the Raptor Center of Minnesota, a world-renowned care facility specializing in birds of prey, for follow-up care.
According to the Wildlife in Need Center, Peregrine populations plummeted in the mid-20th century especially from the East Coast into the Midwest. Although their numbers have risen recently, so much so that they were recently removed from the Federal Endangered Species List, they are still considered Endangered and of Critical Concern in Wisconsin. Although reports come in annually, Peregrines are still not a common sight in most counties across the state.
This particular bird was also banded giving a rare look into where she’d come from.. According to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service this bird was hatched in Genoa, Wis. in 2008. There she was banded and nicknamed “Jesse.” This year she hatched and raised four young birds in the WE Energies nest box in Milwaukee.
The Raptor Center has not only agreed to take Jesse into their care to perform a procedure called “imping” which will replace the missing feathers, but they have also offered to pay the costs involved with the transfer of the bird. If the surgery goes well Jesse may yet finish her journey with a release back to the wild.
JSonline
