Raptor Camp encourages stewardship

By Ashley Matthews
Free Press Staff Writer

July 21, 2007
SHELBURNE -- Joey Borrello stood nervously under a tree with his arm extended, oblivious to everything but the eastern screech owl perched on his gloved hand.

Joey, 10, of Panton, had been working toward this moment all week. Every day, he crept into Virginia 's aviary and seated himself on the ground before her nesting box, hoping to familiarize himself with the little red owl in a ritual called "bird bonding." Now, as Virginia perched on his hand, he stared cautiously at the owl and she swiveled her head, casually observing the cluster of boys seated before her.

"They're really neat," Joey said of the birds he's seen this week. He said he likes raptors because of "the way they fly, the way they hunt, the way they see and hear."

Virginia lives at the headquarters of Outreach for Earth Stewardship, a Shelburne nonprofit that operates educational outreach programs and raptor rehabilitation at Shelburne Farms. The organization also runs Raptor Camp, a day camp that, much like most summer camps, engages children with arts and crafts, games, swimming and hikes.

Unlike other summer camps, Raptor Camp allows each child to "adopt" and handle a raptor, or bird of prey. Unfortunately, Joey hadn't seen much of Virginia before Thursday, as the nocturnal bird prefers to spend days in the isolation of her nesting box.

"These birds aren't like dogs," Raptor Camp Director Sean Palmer reminded the campers as Joey and Virginia stood before them. "They don't come out and want to be friends with you. It takes a huge amount of patience to work with raptors."

This week, the six campers, all boys, adopted three types of owl, an American kestrel and a red-tailed hawk named Isis . Those birds, called education birds, are often unable to thrive in the wild because of physical handicaps, including impaired vision or broken wings. Many birds are injured when they're hit by cars, and others come to the facility because they've been shot, caught in traps, hunted by cats or have been injured flying into windows.

Other raptors housed at the facility are rehabilitated and returned to the wild. Several are at the shelter because of what Palmer calls "inappropriate rescue" -- birds prematurely removed from the care of their parents by humans who think they're helping an abandoned baby. Those birds will be released when they're fully grown and able to care for themselves. They are not handled by humans, as it would be detrimental to their survival in the wild, Palmer said.

"Baby birds don't necessarily need to be rescued. Usually the mother is right nearby and the baby is becoming independent by leaving the nest. It's best to call and consult a professional before you interfere," Palmer said. "If you know where the nest is, put them back in the nest."

Virginia is a permanent resident of Outreach for Earth Stewardship because her wing was broken, likely from a collision with a vehicle. Virginia is unable to effectively hunt in the wild, so she has another job -- she's an ambassador, Palmer said.

As part of the organization's outreach program, birds like Virginia travel to schools and events to help teach people about raptors.

"We do this to try to be advocates for the raptors that live in the wild," Palmer said. "Our goal is to make people fall in love with raptors because if you love raptors, you also must love open fields and forests, mice, grasshoppers, crickets and the rest of the wild."

Children who participate in the nonprofit's Raptor Camp also become ambassadors, said Craig Newman, a co-founder of Outreach for Earth Stewardship.

"Besides the conservation ethic that teaches kids that wild critters are so important to the environment, we also want this organization to continue on," Newman said. "The kids become teachers and take all their information home and then it trickles down, or up."

Newman said he plans to expand Outreach for Earth Stewardship's facilities at Shelburne Farms by raising money to build a flight test and conditioning aviary, which will be large enough for the birds to fly and build much-needed muscle strength. He said Outreach for Earth Stewardship will soon begin soliciting donations for the expansion. Contact Ashley Matthews at 651-4811 or amatthews@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com.