12/19/95

Sam Hendrix, 334/844-3698

AU RAPTOR CENTER SETS NEW MARK WITH 57 BIRD RELEASES THIS YEAR

AUBURN -- When a pair of red tailed hawks named Bacchus and Madison fly off into the sunset this week just outside Auburn, they will become history -- so to speak.

Bacchus and Madison were among a record 123 birds of prey admitted this year at the Southeastern Raptor Rehabilitation Center at Auburn University's College of Veterinary Medicine. That exceeds by six the number that arrived during 1994. This year, student volunteers will have returned an Auburn-record 57 birds back to the wild.

"We are pleased with the number of birds we've had brought in, but more importantly, with the 46.3 percent release rate we've achieved this year," says Joe Shelnutt, the center's rehabilitation director and an AU senior in wildlife biology.

"That tops our previous high rate, which was 41 percent set last year, and it's well above the 33 percent national average release rate for all centers that report to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service."

Center volunteers in 1994 released 24 red tailed hawks, 23 owls and an assortment of other raptors, including one golden eagle. All had been treated for injuries, rehabilitated and kill-tested before being returned to their natural habitat.

The birds are typically brought in from throughout Alabama, Georgia and north Florida. Usually, they are involved in accidents and suffer broken or damaged wings, head and/or eye injuries or other ailments.

Many are treated, rehabilitated and released. Those that survive but are unable to return to the wild are often made permanent residents at the center. Currently there are 25 permanent residents, representing a variety of species and types. The more cooperative residents are shown by center volunteers during public education programs.

The latest bird admitted to the center is Kenya, a 16-month-old golden eagle found near Sylacauga after suffering a gunshot wound. The injury destroyed joints in one of his wings, and while Kenya may survive, he likely will never be released.

"He's facing surgery, but we donŐt know yet what the procedure will be," Shelnutt said. "Kenya's not out of the woods yet, because his injury is severe, but if he survives he could become a permanent resident, which would give us three permanent eagles in the center."

This year has been a good one for the center and its future, as well. Last spring, a Montgomery couple pledged a significant gift toward construction of a state-of-the-art facility to replace the 22-year-old makeshift barn that has housed the center for years. And two student volunteers this winter are finalizing research papers based on their work that they will soon be submitting to scientific journals. One article deals with a disease common to owls, and the other is based on breeding habits of red tailed hawks.

Also this year, the center began publishing a quarterly newsletter and debuted its home page on the Internet's World Wide Web.

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CONTACT: Joe Shelnutt, 334/826-2804 or Lauri Scarbrough, 334/826- 3635.