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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 21, 2015)
FRIDAYEXTRA ! The Daily Astorian Friday, August 21, 2015 Weekend Edition BALD EAGLE DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT S D R I B EST R AT RHINOCEROS AUKLET COMMON LOON Photos by Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: A juvenile bald eagle in its flight cage . A month-old double-crested cormorant at the Wildlife Center of the North Coast. The young bird wound up at the center after being attacked by an eagle. Grandpa, a r hinoceros a uklet and permanent member of the Wildlife Center of the North Coast , is used as an education bird . A common loon sits on a water pillow . Rehabilitation center nurses animals back to health By McKINLEY SMITH The Daily Astorian ‘You have to be willing to get dirty. You get bit and scratched all day long.’ M any of the birds that wind up at the Wild- life Center of the North Coast have been hit by Fars tanJled in ¿ shinJ line or have swallowed plastic. Others are simply hungry. “Right now, the oceans are really warm, so everything is starving to death,” said Josh Sa- ranpaa, the assistant director of the non pro¿ t, volunteer-driven group that helps native birds and other wildlife . The animals might look cute and cuddly but they are not pets. They’re wild. “You have to be willing to get dirty,” he said. “You get bit and scratched all day long.” One volunteer keeps track of the number of species she has seen at the center by adding stars in her guide book on the corre- sponding species page. She’s reached 99. H ere are 10 birds you might meet at the center. Double-crested cormorant The center has several of these birds, some of which can be released, and others that will have to remain at the center. One young cormorant wound up at the center after an eagle attacked him and dropped him in a tree. A taxi cab driver climbed the tree and brought the cormorant to the center, where he was treated for puncture wounds. Now, the little bird is receiving care for a respi- ratory infection. The bird, which is about a month old, may not be released due to developmental issues with its wings . Bald eagle The center gets between six to 12 eagles a year . One juvenile bald eagle occupies a 100-foot — Josh Saranpaa assistant director of the Wildlife Center of the North Coast, talking about taking care of native birds and other wildlife in “Alice in Wonderland.” At ¿ rst, she’s afraid of the duck- lings, but they grow on her. “I really like her,” Saranpaa said. “These birds all have individual personality.” Common murre WESTERN GULLS Western g ull chicks in their cage . À ight cage, space to À ex his wings and practice his À ying skills before he graduates to open skies and unlimited vistas. Saranpaa and his wife caught the eagle, which was starving, at Cape Disappointment. But there’s one more test for the growing predator before his release. “We like to know they can catch live prey before we let them loose,” Saranpaa said. Common loon As a water bird, the com- mon loon has very particular needs the center must strive to meet. The center uses water pillows to accommodate the bird’s heavy body; its legs just aren’t meant to support its bulk on land, and can often look broken, Saranpaa said. The common loon the center has is about 3 pounds. Dark black feathers spotted with white dis- tinguish them visibly . They’re also very vocal and, according to Saranpaa, who would know, they poop a lot. Northern saw-whet owl The center has two northern saw-whet owls, petite, nocturnal birds that blend into their habi- tat, sticking to the shade on hot days. One of their owls won’t be released; it was hit by a car, blinding it in one eye. Now, he’s on an education permit, although he’s not glove trained, so he doesn’t go out much. But his companion, a À edgling, has a chance for release once he’s proved he can catch his own prey. Western gull Western gull chicks are À uffy, camouÀ aged gray speck- led with darker patches of feath- ers. They’re vulnerable looking, unlike the almost haughty adults they’ll become. Adult western gulls are white with gray wings and a yellow beak. Brown pelican Brown pelicans employ a survival mechanism that makes them poor dinner guests. When they’re startled, they’ll regurgi- tate whatever they’ve eaten to lighten the load and help them escape faster. Handling the pel- icans presents a challenge be- cause any interaction leads to the birds losing their lunch … or whatever meal staff or vol- unteers have provided, Saran- paa said, so they feed them after they’ve taken care of all their other needs. American wigeon When ducklings come to the center in need of a mother ¿ g- ure, the center relies on a surro- gate mother to raise them. That mother is an American wigeon. She couldn’t be released, so she took on a job. The duck reminds Saranpaa of the anxious rabbit Last year, the center received about 700 of these birds, and Sa- ranpaa thinks they’ll get at least as many this year. The common murre is a black, white-bellied bird in the same family as auks and puf¿ ns. Surf scoter Another water bird, the surf scoter the center is rehabilitat- ing came in starving and devel- oped a keel sore. Males have a distinctive head, with pale blue eyes and a red, orange-and- white beak, while the females are plainer. Surf scoters are a variety of duck. Rhinoceros auklet Grandpa is a permanent res- ident of the center. He’s blind in his right eye. With his little tufts of eyebrow and cheek feathers, he reminds Saranpaa of an old man. The rhinoceros auklet is a close relative of puf¿ ns. “They feel like a little potato,” Saran- paa said of holding the small birds.