On Christmas Eve, a small group of bystanders watched as a young golden eagle was released into Black Star Canyon in Silverado, 10 days after it was found out in the ocean.
The large bird, only out of the nest for an estimated five or six months, was spotted Dec. 14 by a pair of fishermen 10 miles off the coast of Marina Del Rey, said Dr. Scott Weldy of the Orange County Bird of Prey Center.
“Maybe the bird was trying to fly to the islands out there, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Catalina, or maybe it was flying back,” he said. “It could’ve got tired and hit the water or it could’ve seen something in the water and went down on it to see what it was, because it’s a youngster.”
The fishermen plucked the water-logged bird out of the water, taking it to the Marina Del Rey harbor patrol where they turned it over to authorities.
Weldy, who also runs the Serrano Animal and Bird Hospital in Lake Forest, said the Marina Del Rey Sheriff’s Department reached out while looking for a rescue and he drove over to pick up the bird and bring it back to his hospital for tests.
“It was underweight, wet and just exhausted,” Weldy said.
Despite that, he said the bird “was actually supporting itself and doing really well.”
After a few days, Weldy said he transferred the golden eagle to a flight cage at the Bird of Prey Center. The bird soon began to fly straight up from the ground and back and forth between the high perches, a good sign, Weldy said.
“We did blood work on it, lead levels on it and those were normal. We radiographed it, those were all normal,” he said.
It’s not beneficial for large birds like the golden eagle to be kept in a cage for too long, so the decision was made to release it, he said. “Otherwise, they atrophy their muscles because they’re giant, big tanks, that fly.”
Black Star Canyon, where the eagle was released Sunday, is an area heavy with food and other eagles, Weldy said.
Weldy said he sees golden eagles on rare occasions in Orange County – most of the birds that come into the Bird of Prey Center are ospreys.
Zoologist Peter Bloom, who has been studying birds of prey for several decades, said the breeding population of golden eagles in Orange County is “essentially extinct” because of a loss of habitats to support them. The golden eagle is on California’s protected species list, according to the Department of Fish and Wildlife.
“As of a few years back, there are none breeding in Orange County,” he said. “We have at least one golden eagle here. He hangs around UC Irvine and some of the local county parks this time of year and then goes back into the Santa Ana Mountains.”
Bloom, who tagged the golden eagle before it was released, said he’s optimistic about its continued survival.
“It’s very healthy,” Bloom said. “Maybe it’ll be able to reproduce in Orange County.”
The new band on the bird’s leg and tag on its wing will let biologists and birdwatchers gather data on its movement and life history, Weldy said.
“I’m thankful for the people that were involved in picking up and bringing in this bird, because without being properly cared for, they don’t do well and die,” Weldy said. “Hopefully we won’t ever find the band again until she’s in her twenties or thirties, if we can get her that old.”
