A young bald eagle hit with a shotgun blast in late November is back in the wild.
The eagle had shot and two fractures in her right wing. Tulsa Zoo staff fixed her up and worked with Wild Heart Ranch to get her ready for life in the wild again.
Veterinary technician Alesha Dodd said letting her go today at Oologah Lake was emotional.
"It's definitely bittersweet," Dodd said. "We've spent a lot of time with her and done a lot of work, but this is definitely the best outcome that we could ask for."
Wild Heart Ranch Director Annette King said young bald eagles lack the species’ distinctive white plumage and are sometimes mistaken for red-tailed hawks, but that’s no excuse.
"You can't shoot any bird of prey without it being felonious, but, yeah, eagles are taken very seriously," King said. "These birds are making a good comeback, and we want to make sure they continue."
While shooting birds of prey is illegal, gunshots are one of their leading causes of unnatural death.
Tulsa Zoo Director of Animal Health Kay Backues said after surgeries and healing, the bird also needed intensive physical therapy.
"Someone who's been in the hospital for months and months — as this bird was — would not be able to get up and run a 100-yard dash or run a marathon," Backues said. "And wild animals are athletes; she's got to be able to fly and soar and fish and hunt."
Wild Heart Ranch put the bird through physical therapy after its wounds and broken wing were repaired by Tulsa Zoo veterinarians. The eagle went on increasingly longer flights on a tether to prepare for her release.
