Emma to the rescue!

Yesterday afternoon, I decided Emma really needed a good run, and I knew the other couple in camp were in favor of me letting her off her leash so she could burn off some energy.  So, I took her out to the end of the field and let her go.  Boy, did she take off!  She ran the border of the compound around and around and around for about twenty minutes.  Then, her nose took over as she sniffed out every square inch of the place. 

 

A little while later, she really started barking.  The last time I heard her carry on like that, a five foot rattlesnake was outside my rig.  I hot footed it across the field to see what she was upset about, and this is what I saw…

a red-tailed hawk sitting on the ground!   I put Emma back on her leash and took her back to the rig.

Then I went back to check on the bird.  It could not get up and fly away.  It was very alive, but was obviously injured.

IAs I approached more closely, it was able to extend it’s wings, but didn’t seem able to get up on it’s feet.   Now what?  I headed back to my rig to get my phone and tried to call the number for a wildlife rehabilitator.  No one answered.  I eventually called the refuge assistant manager, and he ended up driving out to take a look at the bird.

 

It turned out that the person I had tried to call is no longer a rehabilitator, so he called the person who now is.  We were told to make the bird comfortable, bring it indoors, and then bring it to them in the morning. (if it was still alive)  We picked up the hawk, put it in a very large cardboard box, and put it for the night in one of the bathrooms of the community building.  We really didn’t hold out much hope that it would make it through the night.

 

I understand that it is the survival of the fittest in the natural world, but it made me feel better to think of the young bird peacefully passing in the dark box as opposed to what would have been it’s fate when the pack of coyotes found it in the night.  I’d rather the coyotes spend their time hunting the rodents in the area.  :)

 

To our surprise, the bird made it through the night, and John, the assistant manager, took it today to the rehabilitation center in Houston.  I don’t suppose I’ll ever find out if it recuperates, but I hope it will.  By the way, the reason I know this was a young bird is that it had a brown barred tail; not the rusty red tail of an adult bird.

It has been raining rather hard all day today, so I could not do the bird survey.  Since the water table is just below the surface at the volunteer pads, we are fairly floating away this evening.  The rain was slanting from the southwest most of the time, so this female American kestrel sought refuge on the lee side of the martin house outside my rig.  I’m sure it helped keep it’s feathers a little dryer.  :)

 

Emma did a good job of alerting me to the plight of the hawk yesterday.

It was located at the base of this tree in the picture.  No one would have seen it without her finding it first.  Right now, I’m just remembering this gorgeous sunset because tonight’s sky remained leaden gray and moisture filled.

 

Thanks for stopping by…. talk to you later,  Judy