Biologists, educators and interns with the Wildlife Images Rehabilitation and Education Center near Grants Pass gathered last week to say goodbye to a golden eagle without a name.
The bird with a six-foot wingspan had spent almost three months at the wildlife clinic, receiving medications, physical therapy and flight conditioning in a 100-foot-long screened enclosure to build stamina and muscle after being hit by a car.
X-rays showed the eagle had a double thighbone fracture and a wrist fracture. After the eagle recovered, but before it could be set free, it had to pass a hunting test.
The golden eagle was never given a name, never treated like a pet, because of the nonprofit group’s mission: to help the bird fly away.
The fully recovered eagle was released in Eagle Point, not because of the city's name, though that was seen as a sweet coincidence. The bird was found on the ground there February 27th, most likely near its regular habitat.
The group decided the Eagle Point Golf Club property was the best location to launch the eagle's renewed life. The 18-hole course has natural terrain, water-filled ponds, open grassland and prey.
