Efforts underway to rehab two injured bald eagles in the Mid-South

OLIVE BRANCH, Miss. (WMC) - Conservationists around the Mid-South are seeing an increase in bald eagle injuries.

Two injured eagles were rescued this week in Tunica County, and are being nursed back to health. Some of those injuries, like in this case, are from other eagles.

“The most eagles I’ve had in a year, might have been two,” said Executive Director for Magnolia Wildlife Education Conservation and Rehabilitation, Inc. Debbie Crum. “This year, me personally, I have rehabbed 16.”

It was a normal Wednesday for Crum until she got call a from Tunica County.

“One of our local conservation duck hunters was out hunting and he came across these two eagles laying on the ground and he was like, ‘Well. that’s not right,” said Crum.

Crum says she’s seen an increase in injuries to our national bird this year.

This time, two female bald eagles, stuck together with serious puncture wounds.

“Our two girls in now, Eagle 1, is 17 pounds, and Eagle 2 is 15 pounds,” said Crum.

”We got them apart, then the chase was on to load them up and get them up to Dr. Lisa.” said Crum.

Dr. Lisa Godfrey, a veterinarian at Stateline Animal Clinic and volunteer at the non-profit, treated the pair in Southaven.

“We put them under gas anesthesia and just examined all the wounds, treated and cleaned all the punctures, got started on some antibiotics and pain medicine, took a few x-rays,” said Dr. Godfrey.

Both eagles are now in recovery.

The goal is to have them soaring in the sky again.

“Back in the ‘70s, they were almost extinct,” said Dr. Godfrey. “There were none in the lower 50 other than in Florida, and now, they’re quite common here and where these were... there’s a pretty big population.”

Data from a 2020 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service report estimates there were 316,700 bald eagles throughout the country during the 2019 breeding season, four times more than a decade earlier.

It’s a promising stat for the bald eagle population, and for these two eagles who will soon spread their wings out in the wild again.

Crum tells Action News 5 that both eagles will be released in a few weeks, separately in a local area.

Magnolia Wildlife Education, Conservation and Rehabilitation Inc., is currently working to build a bald eagle flight cage to continue their rehabilitation efforts. They’re looking for sponsors.

You can find more information about them, here or contact them directly at (901) 254-4295.

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