The bald eagle, named Junior, is believed to have been electrocuted by a B.C. Hydro wire.
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A younger bald eagle raised alongside an adopted hawk and watched by 1000’s of individuals all around the world has been electrocuted.
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Junior, because the fowl was identified to the almost 4,000 members of the Gabriola Rescue of Wildlife Society (GROWLS) eagle nest cam Fb group, has not been seen since Monday night time.
Its physique was discovered later that night by a neighbour who contacted GROWLS director Pam McCartney.
McCartney’s worst fears have been confirmed when she noticed the useless fowl, which confirmed indicators of being electrocuted.
It was “mendacity lifeless underneath the hydro wires, underneath a small transformer and with the noticeable exit burn underneath his wing,” wrote McCartney on the group’s web page on Wednesday. “The second I noticed that candy younger eagle I knew it was our eaglet…”
GROWLS displays 16 lively bald eagle nests on Gabriola Island, together with an eagle cam educated over Junior’s nest.
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Junior and his unorthodox blended-bird household was within the highlight earlier this summer time after their nest cam captured one of many mum or dad eagles dropping a child hawk into the nest.
The hawk, possible meant to be meals for Junior’s dinner, ended up being a member of the family. It was named Malala, which suggests survivor.
Junior and Malala’s antics have captured the hearts of bird-lovers around the globe. This week, lots of them reacted with disappointment and outrage over the loss of life of the younger raptor.
“You have been a really particular eagle to so many individuals,” wrote one member. “I’ll always remember the fantastic relationship you had together with your hawklet sibling. I actually loved watching you each.”
Stated one other: “I had so been hoping that Junior wouldn’t have became one of many typical statistics. It’s most troublesome for a younger eagle to succeed in maturity.”
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Some members of the group have launched into a marketing campaign urging B.C. Hydro to do extra to stop giant birds from getting electrocuted sooner or later.
McCartney stated GROWLS had beforehand reached out to the hydro firm in regards to the wires after one other fledgling from that very same nest was killed a couple of years in the past.
Junior’s loss of life was a “reminder of how destructive human impression impacts the wild in probably the most tragic methods,” she stated.
A B.C. Hydro spokeswoman stated the Crown company was unhappy to study in regards to the loss of life of the eagle.
“We’ll work with GROWLS on Gabriola Island to seek out out what occurred and see what might be executed to stop contacts,” stated Susie Rieder.
B.C. Hydro tries to stop situations of wildlife and birds coming into contact with its infrastructure, which might trigger an influence outage, stated Rieder.
The corporate builds perches and guards and installs diverters on energy strains, which mirror mild and enhance visibility, with a view to defend eagles from wires and different gear.
In accordance with Parks Canada, bald eagles aren’t thought-about in danger as their populations have recovered from the low numbers within the 60s and 70s.
Nonetheless, eagles have a excessive mortality fee. Near 50 per cent don’t survive their first yr as a result of predation and different man-made hazards similar to electrocution on energy strains, collisions, and lead poisoning.
