Birds of Prey

Raptor Aviaries

The Chattahoochee Nature Center is home to many birds of prey that have been injured and cannot be returned to the wild.

BALD EAGLES

The female hatched in 1997 in Florida. She sustained a broken femur while attempting to steal a fish from an adult eagle. Rehabilitation took place at the Audubon Society Center for Birds of Prey (ACBOP) in Maitland FL before she was transferred to CNC in November 1999. The male hatched in 2008 and was found poisoned at a landfill in Florida and had a fractured wing. He was rehabilitated at ABCOP, but can only fly approximately 200 feet. He arrived at CNC in April 2009.

COOPER’S HAWKS

The male arrived in March 2008 after being hit by a car. The fractured wing did not heal correctly, and he is incapable of full flight.

RED-SHOULDERED HAWKS

The male hatched in early 2002 and arrived at CNC in December 2002 after being electrocuted by power lines in Florida. The resulting scar tissue to his muscles renders him incapable of s

ustained flight. The female arrived at CNC for rehabilitation in January 2006 after hitting a building. She cannot get more than 5 feet off the ground unassisted.

RED-TAILED HAWKS

One female hatched in 1988 and arrived here in May 1989 with nerve damage to the right wing. The second female red-tailed hawk hatched in 2004 and arrived at CNC as a rehab case in April 2005 after being shot. X-rays revealed 14 pellets in the body and a fractured right femur that could not be repaired

BARN OWLS

The two female Barn Owls hatched in captivity in 2008 at Great Valley Nature Center in Pennsylvania. Both of their parents were injured and non-releasable and happened to breed on exhibit. Pennsylvania does not allow the release of captive-bred raptors, so they had to find a new home. They arrived at Chattahoochee Nature Center in June 2009.

BARRED OWLS

One female arrived in March 1991 with a broken toe on the left foot, making it incapable of grasping tightly with that foot. The second female arrived in January 1993 with head trauma that destroyed the left eye.

GREAT HORNED OWLS

One female arrived in April 2005 as a juvenile from the Carolina Raptor Center in Charlotte, NC. She has an elbow injury (cause unknown) that will not allow her left wing to extend fully. The other female arrived in May 2012 as an adult from Amicalola Falls State Park. She has nerve and tissue damage at her left wrist from an electrocution..

BLACK VULTURE

He arrived at CNC in 2006 after being removed from his nest by some well-intentioned biologists who did not realize vultures often nest on the ground. This bird is imprinted (permanently bonded to humans) and cannot survive on its own.

TURKEY VULTURE

The female arrived in January 1989 with nerve damage to the right wing, rendering her incapable of full flight.