By Heather Graves
Correspondent
GREEN BAY – After several months of recovery at the Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary, two young bald eagles were released back into the wild Saturday, Nov. 2.
Dozens, including Green Bay Mayor Eric Genrich, stood watch as the two birds, one male and one female, took flight and soared over the bay, reestablishing themselves in their natural habitat.
“The sanctuary is a true gem,” Genrich said. “Thanks to all the staff and volunteers for making this possible.”
Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary curator Lori Bankson said both eagles were about 2 to 3 years old based on the feather coloration on their heads.
Both birds of prey were brought to the sanctuary with wing injuries.
The female was found in September in the Door County area by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.
When found, Bankson said she was thin, couldn’t fly and was depressed.
The male eagle was found by the Oneida Nation Police Department with an injured wing making it difficult for him to fly.
“We’re very grateful to have that relationship with them to take care of that eagle and get him to us,” Bankson said.
As the national bird of the United States, bald eagles are considered a protected species.
They were removed from the federal endangered species list in August 2007.
“Green Bay is actually a hot spot for bald eagles, coming in and fishing on the bay and just making wildlife better a lot more,” Bankson said.
She said helping injured wildlife recover and return to the wild is the top goal of the sanctuary’s Rehabilitation Program at the Wildlife Sanctuary.
Bankson said because these two eagles are young, they are more black and brown instead of brown and white.
The pair are now going to look for other eagles to see where they should roust, where they should fish and where they should scavenge.
“Releases are very special,” Bankson said. “We will not be banding them, but I have a really good feeling that we will seeing these guys for awhile. We have a very high population of eagles that spend the winter with us. So we will be seeing them come and go quite a bit.”