Donna
I'm Falcon Crazy
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« Reply #1 on: 26-Jan-13, 11:14:05 PM » |
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Official Press Release For Project Lucy ~
As many of you have seen, Lucy has returned to the nest for significant time in the last few days. We have been watching closely since we first suspected in late November that she might have an injury to her foot. These recent visits to the nest since Sunday (12/16/12) have given us the opportunity for some very close up examination of her feet. Using the PTZ camera to get clear views of her feet has allowed us to draw some conclusions about her condition that we were unable to do up to now.
What we have seen does not look good. In these images it is clear that the toes of the right foot are dead tissue. This is something we suspected might be the case back in November when we had only glimpses of what appeared to be gray or missing toes. Since at that time we could not be certain of the extent of injury from those first images, we embarked on a project to try to capture Lucy in order to examine and evaluate her condition. Despite being prepared to capture her at one of three sites in the area, we have been unable to capture Lucy, as she remains able to fly. We have continued to keep track of her as much as possible through direct observation. We have continued to see both Lucy, and her mate Larry, in the area of the nest. Sunday 12/16/12 was the first time she returned to the nest and we were able to capture enough close images of her feet to draw conclusions about her condition.
After thorough expert review of the video and still photo images, we have determined that there is no treatment available for Lucy. It is not possible to repair tissue that has died. As noted above, it is likely that even when we first suspected something was wrong, the tissue was already dead. In all likelihood, the injury occurred some months in advance of our first suspecting something was wrong, perhaps as early as August or September. Due to the time of year, in the fall of the year, Lucy simply was not regularly present in the nest. Consequently, we did not become aware of the injury until the toes had already died. Even had we been able to capture her at our first indication of injury, there is no treatment that could have saved her toes. As discussed in previous posts, an eagle’s toes and feet are critical to her survival. Not only are healthy feet vital for hunting, but as perching birds, eagles spend much of their time on their feet. Injuries to the feet are devastating for birds of prey.
The team that assembled to attempt to determine what happened to Lucy, and if possible capture and evaluate her, has determined that a capture is no longer the best option. Since there is no available treatment for Lucy, a capture is an unnecessary intrusion into the life of this wild bird. If we were able to examine her in person, we might find some clue as to what the cause of injury might be, but knowing we cannot save her foot makes the risks of capture for Lucy far greater than any advantage for her. Without treatment options to repair the damage to her foot, she would be left with one foot which is an untenable condition for any large bird. For Lucy, or any bird with the extent of injuries that Lucy exhibits, if she were to come into human care, the most likely outcome would almost certainly be euthanasia.
We have decided against this course for several reasons. First, we do not have reason to believe that Lucy is in pain. Dead tissue is not painful. The toes on her right foot are dead. We have also observed some swelling on her left foot, likely as result of her having to compensate, using the left foot to support most of her weight for many weeks. It is difficult to know whether this is painful for her, but based on her behavior, she is not in severe distress. Lucy continues to fly, eat, defecate and preen. These are all good signs of her overall well-being. Somehow, she is managing despite these serious impairments and adapting to her disability.
We will continue to monitor the situation closely. If Lucy’s condition deteriorates to the point that she is in severe distress, or is on the ground and cannot fly, we would move in to assist her. If Lucy were completely unable to manage, she could not have survived this long. Somehow she has adapted to her new abilities. It is at least possible that she could breed. A female eagle spends many months on the nest, without having to perch or hunt, as the male supplies most of the food for the family.
We have no desire to create a false hope. Lucy’s condition is dire. In all likelihood, the toes on her right foot will soon drop off. Again, they are dead tissue and have been dead for some time. There is no pain associated with dead tissue. Although she has managed for sometime following this injury, she may not be able to do so much longer. Winter is a difficult time even for healthy wildlife. Food is scarce and weather conditions test even a vigorous animal’s strength. Due to her limitations, Lucy will likely be eating more carrion, which will increase her risk of exposure to lead, a common cause of death in wild eagles. Lucy may not survive the winter.
Eagles4Kids will continue to stream video from the nest camera. Wildlife cams offer us an opportunity to view the life of eagles and other species as never before. As educators, we all believe that whatever the outcome for Lucy, ultimately, we will learn something. Life for eagles and all wild species is precarious. In the first season of Eagles4Kids, students and viewers learned a difficult lesson after the original female at the nest disappeared before laying eggs and no young were produced that year. However, we saw the perseverance of nature when Lucy and Larry successfully fledged two young last year. We are already learning that wild animals can adapt in ways that seem impossible to us. So, these eagles we have become so attached to may yet have something to teach us from this current situation.
We are grateful to everyone for their care and concern for Lucy and all wildlife. We, like all of you, care about Lucy as an individual bird. But we also recognize our limitations. Even though we may wish we could help her, we know that there’s nothing to be done right now.
We especially thank you for your patience. This process has been complex, time-consuming and at times heart wrenching. Each of the partners, all of whom have volunteered their time to this project, have needed to carefully evaluate the information, discuss and decide on next steps. We know that has meant that often the viewer, those of you so engaged with Lucy throughout these recent web cam seasons, have been left wondering what was happening. We have done our best to update everyone along the way. We are committed to communicating openly and honestly about this process, but at times kept the process private so that each of the partners could do their best work. We will do our best to share with you at this time the images and information we used to come to these conclusions. Thank you for your continued patience and care.
Eagles4Kids
National Eagle Center
Raptor Education Group, Inc (REGI)
Raptor Services, LLC
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