FALCON FLASH
Dateline: Cleveland, Ohio
June 12, 2010
Mr. Harvey Webster, Director of Wildlife Resources at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, sends the sad report that Ranger has been seriously injured:
“Laura Jordan of the Medina Raptor Center relayed a message to the Museum that a falcon had been recovered on the sidewalk at the base of the Fifth Third Building at 600 Superior Avenue on Thursday at 9:50 AM and was being held in a box by building security. I retrieved the bird at 10:45 am. It was Ranger. He had apparently collided with the building and had collapsed on the sidewalk. No one witnessed the collision so we are unaware of why he hit the building”. Mr. Webster assessed Ranger’s condition: “Ranger was very groggy and had blood in his mouth and throat. Though able to stand and responsive to stimuli around him, he definitely was not ready to be released”. He was taken to a veterinarian and is in very serious condition.
Mr. Webster reports that the location where Ranger was found “is close to the territorial boundary between the Terminal Tower falcons and the Bohn Building falcons. So perhaps it was a territorial dispute” that caused Ranger’s injuries.
Ranger on May 25
Our thanks to the Cleveland Museum of Natural History for sponsoring the FalconCams.
Photo is courtesy of Scott Wright, volunteer peregrine nest monitor. It may be used by children for school and/or personal projects, but please give Mr. Wright photo credit. All others must contact Mr. Wright directly for permission to use his photos.
This leaves SW alone to feed and watch over her fledglings. Mr. Webster is hopeful that she will be able to manage: “There are numerous examples of a single Peregrine parent successfully caring for its late stage nestlings on its own. SW is clearly very experienced and should be up to the task”.
Ranger is being cared for by veterinarian Dr. Gary Riggs and by Laura Jordan of the Medina Raptor Center, which is dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating birds and specializes in birds of prey. To learn more about their work go to: http://www.medinaraptorcenter.org/
Our thanks to Dr. Riggs, Ms. Jordan and Mr. Webster for taking care of Ranger.
