Aaron Berscheid is a district wildlife officer for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Aaron covers the ìwildî side of Northeast El Paso County, including Black Forest, Falcon, Peyton and Calhan. He also covers some of Elbert County, north of U.S. Highway 24 and south of State Highway 86, including the towns of Elbert, Kiowa, Ramah, Simla, Matheson and a small portion of the Limon area.
Often, birds of prey found on the ground are like toddlers learning to walk or overeaters at ThanksgivingRemember when your kids were learning to walk? Toddlers learn to stand, then take a step or two and fall. Then they crawl some more. And before you know it they have mastered their balancing skills and are walking and running around. (And creating new worries for their parents!)And have you ever eaten so much you can barely move?These examples explain what is going on in the raptor world, which produces a lot of calls about injured hawks, owls and eagles.Often, when I get a call that a bird of prey is injured, Iíll ask what the injury may be and Iíll have them send a picture or video so I can evaluate the situation before I get on the scene.More often than not, after watching the video, I do not need to respond. The birds are not injured at all.So what would make a bird appear injured, but not need help?Well, this time of year, many birds of prey are hatching and raising the next generation. And after they get big enough and grow their primary flight feathers, they start trying to fly.Just like humans arenít good at walking at first, the fledgling birds are not very good at flying either. They need practice; and, unfortunately that usually means they spend time on the ground. Usually, the parents are around taking care of the youngster and that is the best care any wild animal can have.The other main reason these meat-eating birds may be on the ground is that they just finished a big meal. Imagine yourself after a huge Thanksgiving dinner. Probably grabbed a third plate when two would have sufficed. You sit down on the couch in your comfy pants, maybe watch some football, but mostly almost fall asleep. Well, thatís how hawks have to eat sometimes.Hawks donít always know when they will get their next meal, so they will eat as much as they physically can in one sitting. This can lead them to the point where they may not even be able to fly. They can be stuck on the ground for hours to digest their food.Another possibility is that they are protecting a meal. They do not want to fly off until they absolutely canít stay.Donít get me wrong. Iím not suggesting you ignore a raptor on the ground. We welcome calls because you never know. Birds of prey can also get themselves in some hairy situations and can become injured.Whether they are hunting near a road and get struck by a vehicle, or they are in a neighborhood and donít see a pane of glass, hawks do find ways to need attention from CPW and our rehabber partners.Itís not normal for birds of prey to be on the ground. This causes many people to be concerned, and understandably so. If you ever are concerned about a hawk, owl or eagle, please call us. We can evaluate and make the best decision for that situation and bird.In the coming months, Iíll share more of those stories as I write about wildlife issues in our community: Got a question, problem or column idea, please email me at aaron.berscheid@state.co.us or call me at 719-227-5231.I might even answer your question in a future installment of ìWildlife Matters.î
