On borrowed wings

A fledgling bald eagle made his first long-distance flight Wednesday -- although he didn't get to use his wings.

The injured bird was loaded aboard a small Cessna 172 airplane at the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport bound for the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Missouri at Columbia.

After suffering a broken left leg a week ago at Duck Creek, near Puxico, Mo., the young eagle was brought to Skyview Animal Clinic in Cape Girardeau Wednesday morning by volunteers.

"Birds aren't born knowing how to fly," said volunteer John Watkins. "His first flight was rather shaky, and he ran into something, more than likely."

Watkins has volunteered in similar rescues since 1969. He is a cardiothoracic and vascular assistant at St. Francis Medical Center.

"That's what I do with two-thirds of my life -- this is the other third," he said, entering an exam room where the bird was prepared for the trip to Columbia.

Pilot Bill Dunn, a cardiovascular profusionist at St. Francis, donated the plane ride.

"It was a real pleasure and honor to be that eagle's wings for awhile," Dunn said.

Brown and gray with a dark beak, the scruffy looking eagle likely hatched in mid to late January, Watkins said.

Though weakened from days without eating, it still took three people to restrain the eagle so veterinarian Karen Bangert could safely provide it fluids through an intravenous tube and place bits of raw squirrel meat containing medicine in its beak.

"Boy, he's thin, isn't he?" said Bangert, trying to find a place on the bird's chest to insert the IV needle.

Once its hood was removed, the bird watched the group warily with unblinking black eyes but fed on the meat without struggling.

"See those talons?" said Bangert, pointing to the long, dark claws. "They're so strong, they could crush a baseball."

Bad breaks

The animal's leg was broken in two places below the knee. It will take about six weeks to heal, but if an infection sets in and the leg can't be saved, the eagle will be euthanized.

"It can't go hopping about on one leg and still be able to fend for itself," Watkins said.

Anyone who finds an injured wild animal shouldn't approach it, Watkins warned. Instead, people should call the local conservation agent or the sheriff's department.

"Observe it from a distance," he said. "Don't try to pick it up or you can get hurt really bad because they're scared and are just trying to defend themselves."

The bird was the second eagle treated at Skyview this year. In 2002, they treated four. About 150 wild animals a year are treated by the clinic, including raccoons, foxes, owls and a host of other creatures. But for the staff, every afflicted animal is important, Bangert said.

"Truly, people go into this profession because it's a job of the heart," she said. "They're all alive. Whether it's a pet or a wild animal, we give them good treatment."

mwells@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 160