Rescued golden eagle returned to the wild at SLO County ranch. See it take flight
For the first time in almost two months, a golden eagle took to the sky at Santa Margarita Ranch on Thursday afternoon.
When Kelly Vandenheuvel opened the cage door, the bird swooped into the sky — flying in a wide circle around scattered oak trees before disappearing into the horizon.
Vandenheuvel works with Pacific Wildlife Care and helped rehabilitate the eagle after it was found laying on the ground near the train tracks nearby .
“People have asked me over the years, ‘Are you sad when they take off?’” she said. “No, that’s what we are aiming for: To see them go back into the wild.”
Rescued golden eagle released into the wild
On June 30, bystanders spotted the eagle laying beside the train tracks in Santa Margarita, Vandenheuvel said. Pacific Wildlife Care rescued the bird and delivered it to the center’s Morro Bay headquarters.
The bird seemed shaken, but the veterinarian found no serious injuries, she said.
“It looked as if maybe it had been hit by something,” Vandenheuvel said. “It was found near the train tracks, so maybe grazed by the train or a vehicle — and it was kind of just out of it a little bit.”
The eagle recuperated at the Pacific Wildlife Care’s headquarters in Morro Bay for one month, then was transported to Vandenheuvel’s flight cage in Cayucos.
The flight cage is 50 feet long and 30 feet tall. There, the bird can fly around and gain strength for returning to the wild, she said.
“This is one of the bigger golden eagles I’ve had in my flight, and it did some damage — it was ready to go,” she said. “It broke a couple perches and tried to get out of the plastic mesh that we have and it tore in a few spots.”
The eagle is likely 10 or 12-years-old, she said. Golden eagles can live up to 25 to 35 years in the wild, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The eagle weighed nine pounds when it was rescued, and almost 11 pounds on Thursday when it was released, Vandenheuvel said.
“It’s important to bring him back to the area he’s from — he might have a mate,” she said.
On Thursday, Vandenheuvel drove the eagle to the top of a golden, grassy hill and released him from his cage.
“He took off and he flew the thermals and he just kept flying,” she said. “That’s what we want to see. We want to be sure they’re ready to go when we release them.”
If you find a wild animal in distress, call Pacific Wildlife Care at 805-543-9453.
This story was originally published August 30, 2024 at 11:14 AM.
