Rescued & Rehabilitated, A Red-tailed Hawk Returns to King Estate
Last September, King Estate vineyard workers noticed an injured Red-tailed Hawk on the estate. Volunteers from the Cascades Raptor Center quickly rescued the bird, which had an infected foot caused by a prey bite. Four months and one amputated toe later, the hawk proved that it was well enough to return home to King Estate where it and other birds of prey play a vital role providing natural pest control. Owls, hawks, and other raptors thrive on our 1,033 certified organic acres because there is no chance of poisoning through the food chain, and there is plenty of room to roam. King Estate Winery and Eugene’s Cascades Raptor Center are proud to hold a unique partnership that allows orphaned and rehabilitated birds of prey a second shot at life in the wild world.
New Barn Owls Arrive at King Estate Winery
Our friend Laurin Huse, the Rehabilitation Director at Cascades Raptor Center, arrived at King Estate Winery on a breezy but sunny day with four boxes. Each box contained a rehabilitated 4-month-old barn owl that came to the Cascades Raptor Center as an orphan. Some baby birds were only days old when they arrived at the center. Once they arrived at CRC the birds were paired with an adult owl foster mom who taught them everything they needed to know to survive in the wild. When they proved they can survive in the wild by demonstrating their ability to catch live prey in a specialized hunting enclosure, these young owls got the opportunity to return to the wild.
American Kestrels Released by Cascades Raptor Center
Kit and Laurin from Cascades Raptor Center were out last week to release some American Kestrels. The Kestrels are placed in a nesting box, and a mesh screen is taped over the door. In order to calm down and become acclimated to their new surroundings, the Kestrels stay in the box with the screen on for 2-3 hours.
Predator perches installed on the estate
The King Estate raptor program continues to develop, with more nest boxes and releases, as well as the addition of ten new predator perches around the estate.