HawkQuest

Today we remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. May their memories be honored with gratitude and respect.

📸 Dawn Key

Our volunteers enjoyed horsing around with this little one at a special event at JA Ranch today. Some of our birds don’t care for horses and other animals, so we take care to keep them distanced at events.

L to R: Meredith, Kristen, Gail, Mary, and Erin

📸 Kin

Stunning photo taken of two beauties! Pictured is Mary holding our female turkey vulture who is showing off her massive wingspan of nearly 6 feet!

Because of their strong stomach acids, turkey vultures are able to consume toxins that can be fatal to humans including anthrax, botulism and rabies.

📸 Tina

What a fun day! Our volunteers participated in the “A Day at the Farm” booth at Bromley Farm in Brighton yesterday, and loved connecting with the community.

📸 Lorissa

The Xcel Energy Fort St. Vrain eagle cam is live again, and this season is off to an exciting start! The nest currently holds FOUR eggs, which is rare for bald eagles, as they typically lay 1–3 eggs per clutch.

One eaglet has already hatched, and one of our volunteers saw mom feeding the chick this morning.

Tune in to the live cam and share your observations with us!

Xcel Energy Fort St. Vrain Eagles (top view) Click the stream to watch the Fort St. Vrain eagles live! They usually lay eggs in late February to early March, the eggs hatch in early to mid April, and ...

The first turkey vulture of the season has been spotted in Castlewood Canyon State Park! Turkey vultures are known as nature’s clean up crew. They eat carcasses that could otherwise spread deadly diseases to humans. Many people think they look ominous, but they are incredibly important to our ecosystem.

A word from our wonderful “Raptor Monitors”:

We all saw our FOS TUVUs. (That’s geek bird talk for “First of Season”.)

Credit to Jay Poules for taking this photo while he was on Rim Rock Trail.

The Turkey Vultures are with us from April through mid-October, and ridding the park of rotting carcasses earns them the name of “Nature’s [or Castlewood’s] Clean-up Crew.”

We are not sure where they overwinter: possibly Costa Rica or Mexico. We’re always happy to see them come back to Castlewood.

We’re so excited to introduce the newest member of our HawkQuest family — a beautiful juvenile bald eagle, named Indiana (Indy for short)! 🦅

This young girl is right around one year old and has already had quite a journey. After falling from her nest, she was taken in by the incredible team at Soarin' Hawk Raptor Rehab in Indiana, where she received the care she needed to survive and begin healing.

Thanks to one of our amazing volunteers — who still helps us from Indiana — HawkQuest was recommended as a place where she could continue her journey and help inspire others through education.

Here is Indy with two of our other female bald eagles. As Indy matures, her beak and eyes will turn yellow, and by about five years old she’ll develop the classic white head and tail of an adult bald eagle.

We are honored to now be part of Indy’s story. Stay tuned as we get to know her better and share more about her personality and progress. We can’t wait for you to meet her! 💛

Volunteers: Tanya, Dani & Christina

Thank you to all the volunteers who helped fly Cheyenne this season! Your dedication and hard work are very much appreciated.

L to R: Dani, Mary, Tina holding Cheyenne, Melodie, Ann, Liesel, Dawn and Christina

Please consider contacting your U.S. Representative. Lead ammo and tackle pose a significant threat to birds of prey.

TAKE ACTION: The House of Representatives is set to vote this week on H.R. 556, a bill that would prevent federal agencies from prohibiting or even regulating the use of toxic lead ammunition and fishing tackle on public lands and in public waters.

There is no safe level of lead exposure. Each year, lead ammunition leads to illness and death for millions of birds and other wild animals. Hunters and their family members—especially children—can also be poisoned by eating meat contaminated by lead. For the sake of public health and wildlife protection, we must ensure that federal agencies retain the ability to regulate lead ammunition.

Please urge your US representative to oppose H.R. 556! https://awionline.org/action-center #/535

📷: A turkey vulture with lead poisoning. Photo by Blue Ridge Wildlife Center.