-------------------------- N E W S R E L E A S E ---------------------------- Auburn University - University Relations (334) 844-9999 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 8/22/95 Sam Hendrix, 334/844-3698 GIFT TO PROVIDE NEW HOME FOR AU'S RAPTOR REHABILITATION CENTER AUBURN -- A gift from a Montgomery couple will help fund a new $865,000 home for a nationally respected rehabilitation center for birds of prey at Auburn University's College of Veterinary Medicine. The gift from H.B. "Woody" Bartlett, a 1964 AU veterinary graduate, and his wife, Kelley Bartlett, will support construction of a state-of-the art 2,250-square-foot facility to house new offices and flight cages for the 23-year-old Southeastern Raptor Rehabilitation Center. And the Barletts have agreed to help raise the remainder of the construction costs. "We have an appreciation for raptors, and we believe strongly in the future of this program," said Kelley Bartlett. "We wanted the veterinary students to have a proper place to care for them and to allow the public to come see these birds." The AU Board of Trustees has endorsed the project budget. Veterinary Dean J.T. Vaughan described the existing facility as "an embarrassment that was never meant to be more than temporary," adding, "We are grateful for the opportunity the Bartletts are providing our faculty and students to continue expansion of our raptor rehabilitation program." "This program has survived from its inception because of the dedication of people, primarily students, willing to perform miracles on no budget. It will prosper in the future because of the same level of dedication and because it finally will have adequate housing." The gift, made through Auburn's Next Generation capital campaign, will fund Phase I of the planned raptor center, where AU students will be able to nurture and rehabilitate injured birds of prey. Phase I will include treatment areas, food preparation and storage areas, housing for permanent avian residents and flight cages for birds undergoing rehabilitation. Site selection has been narrowed to two locations at the veterinary complex, and preparation should begin this fall, with construction to be completed by winter quarter. After Phase I is completed and funding is secured, Phase II conceptualizes a surgical suite/training room area, and Phase III of the project proposes a 100-seat amphitheater for exhibits and educational programs. A fourth phase would add office space for faculty and students as well as additional rehabilitation flight cages. Long-range plans call for living space to house night shift student workers, visiting The SERRC was organized in 1972 and licensed in 1977 by a joint agreement of former AU Professor James Milton of the Small Animal Clinic, the College of Veterinary Medicine and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Fish and Wildlife Service. The establishment of the SERRC was prompted during the winter of 1977 when 13 bald eagles wounded by gunfire were admitted to the Small Animal Clinic for treatment. During the past decade, more than 1,000 raptors have received care from AU students. In 1994, 117 birds of prey were admitted through the Small Animal Clinic, and according to student records, 48 birds were rehabilitated and released to the wild. The center's 41 percent success rate is well above the 35 percent national release average. Today, the center is also home to nearly two dozen birds of prey that are unable, because of the severity of their injuries, to be returned to the wild. They include two eagles and several hawks, falcons and owls. Entirely student-run, the SERRC thrives through student volunteers, many of them enrolled in AU's veterinary medicine program, with others from other programs at the university, such as wildlife science or biology. The student volunteers typically make between 60 and 80 public presentations each year, taking small numbers of hawks, owls, falcons, eagles to schools, conservation groups and other events to help educate the public about the birds. The federally-protected raptors function as indicators of environmental health and play a key role in the cycle of life in the rural South, controlling populations of rodents and snakes. The injuries AU students treat usually result from the birds being shot, struck by vehicles, getting tangled in barbed wire or from environmental contaminants. With new facilities, AU hopes to increase the number of student volunteers, to attract veterinary residents and faculty with interest in avian medicine and to provide more opportunities for the public to encounter the birds. specialists and researchers, or a veterinary residents. # # # aug95:AU-raptor CONTACT: Dr. Ken Nusbaum, 334/844-2693, or student directors Joseph Shelnutt or Laurie Scarbrough by leaving a message at the Small Animal Clinic, 334/844-4690.