These are the two young, fuzzy white faced broad-winged hawks who came into the care of the VINS wildlife services team last month. The two were rescued by a logger who, unknowingly, was also their downfall when he cut the tree in which their nest was perched. Below is the pair when they first came in.
The gentleman logger who initially grounded the birds got them into the care of a well trained volunteer who, after observing them for injury overnight, attempted to re-nest the pair in a tree local to their original nest sight. She was hoping the parents were still in the area after the excitement of the previous day and watched the new nest from a distance from 5:30am until dusk, waiting for signs the adult broad-wings would return. Alas, no parental hawks were to return to the site. The nestlings were brought back to the ground (much more gently this time), and were brought in to VINS. Here they have moved through three different enclosures to keep up with their rapid growth.
Now the two have moved outside into one of our small flight enclosures to practice flying, build up some muscles, and get used to the hot days and cool nights of the Vermont summer. Since both birds are eating well on their own and are nearly fully grown, with some accrued endurance in the flight department and by passing a live prey test in a week or two, they will be deemed “rehabilitated” and set free!