Running down the hall with my hair on fire...

Good morning…

Thanks to everyone who has called Bank of America on our behalf. I really appreciate your emotional support and it’s not too late to call today in case anyone else is in the mood to kick-start their holiday weekend. As of yesterday, haven’t heard back from the folks holding my life in their hands, so perhaps no news is good news. But then again…it’s a holiday weekend and maybe they’ve gotten off to an early start. I know if I had to work for a bank, I’d have a bottle of vodka stashed in my desk drawer. :)

Carlos – 818-713-2841
Pryana – 631-847-8223

I’ll camp out on Brian Moynihan’s door step if I have to and handcuff myself to his gate. He’ll either make a phone call and help us or pepper spray me and have me arrested.

Someone asked whether or not the DNR or USFWS could step in and help…I was quick to inform them that if every rehabber went up in a puff of smoke, the two departments would join hands and do the Snoopy Dance all over the 110 degree parking lot. While our job is to end up making them look good, (like they actually care about the individual critter) we are nothing but a pain the shoulder for them. That’s why they make it as difficult as possible to acquire any kind of state/federal permit; they don’t WANT you to have one and they hope you’ll just give up and go away. It is what it is, I guess. That said, kudo’s to Michelle Outlaw with FWS, who is the only person who actually answers the stinkin’ phone if I need something, and even if it’s not her ‘department’, she’ll get the answer I need. Thank you for being there.

In the mean time, even though I am clinging to the edge of the cliff by my Lee Press-On Nails, I have to keep moving forward and caring for those animals that most people don’t think about…

I drove up to Pickens County yesterday to pick up a baby Broadwing Hawk that the nice folks at Appalachian Animal Hospital in Ellijay have been working on since Monday. Something tore into this poor dear and injured his crop area and damaged a large area on the outside of his leg. (Deep enough to damage the feather follicles, but maybe that won’t be a problem). The problem was that he was covered in maggots and fly eggs. I swear I hate those bloody things. Anyway, I think he’s on the road to recovery, but I can’t put him out with the other two for a while yet. He can use the leg enough that he can perch and self feed, which is a good thing.

Broadwing Hawks are actually the most common Buteo in North America, but you wouldn’t know it because you never see them. They are small, secretive hawks that spend their lives in the woods. Every once in a great while you’ll see them crossing the road in front of your car going from one patch of woods to the other, but unless you live next door to me J or spend time in a tree stand, you won’t see them. They make this really sweet Peee-WEEEEE call, unlike their larger cousins, the Red-shouldered hawks, whose call is obnoxious as all get-out and impossible to even spell.

Except for the size and call (and the eye color is slightly different), the BWH’s look a lot like RSH’s in their first year, which is why they get confused with each other when trying to ID them by sight.

Red-shouldered Hawk youngster “Yap, yap, yap…FEED ME!”

Cook ‘em for a while and they grow into this… RSH in First year plumage

RSH adult plumage

This is the BWH I picked up yesterday with the injuries…damaged crop area full of maggots

And the big boo-boo on the outside of his leg. At least it’s easy to get to…

I happen to have two healthy ones in the hopper right now…they are SO beautiful!

Haven’t posted Barred owl pics lately. I am successfully hacking 4 out of the 5 that I raised this season and 4 out of 5 ain’t bad odds…. It says so in the manual.

Thanks again for your help…I’ll keep you posted as to our fate. I appreciate you taking the time to read my blog. If you are able to help us with Mouse Money, we sure would appreciate it and I’m still hoping to park this (otherwise wonderful) gas guzzling Land Cruiser, if anyone has something they are looking to get rid of.

We hope you have a safe and happy 4th! ….m.

www.hawktalk.org
Monteen McCord
HawkTalk
P.O. Box 130
Holly Springs, GA 30142