Birds of prey rehabilitations spike

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SANDPOINT — The Sand Creek neighborhood witnessed the plight of a young osprey that got into trouble in late August.

Residents and people passing on the walking trail near Popsicle Bridge were dismayed to see a young osprey hanging upside down attached to a dead branch high up in a tree.

“When it went to take off, it didn’t take off. It just flopped upside down,” said Wesley Dustman, who lives nearby. “And then once it was hanging there it couldn’t do anything, it was awful.”

A neighbor used a telescope to get an up-close view and saw the osprey had one of its legs tangled in some fishing line, which was then ensnared on the dead tree branch close to the top of the 70-foot tree, according to witnesses.

Dustman called Sandpoint Police and Idaho Department of Fish & Game, but neither agency had the necessary equipment to reach the osprey. A growing number of neighbors and others watched helplessly as the bird of prey struggled, working for hours to try and find help. Finally, a passing spectator called a helping hand to the rescue.

The man reached out to Travis Miller the owner of Apex Tree Service. Miller reached out to Arron Murrow who also works at Apex. Miller was unable to be reached for comment because he is in Alaska on a fishing trip.

“It was a pretty hectic evening. It started raining, and the wind started blowing pretty hard,” said Murrow, recalling the chain of events that evening.

Murrow stood watch on the ground as Miller ascended the tree, cutting every limb on the ascent. When asked in an interview with the Daily Bee if Murrow feared for Miller’s safety, he said, “Travis is amazing at what he does, it just comes down to the strength of the tree at that point.”

Weather conditions were stormy and windy according to everyone who was there that evening.

Miller limbed the tree until approximately 60 feet into the air when he reached the branch the osprey was stuck on. He secured the branch assuring it wouldn’t fall to the ground before cutting it.

“When we cut the branch that was secure, it must have been just enough to release the fishing line,” said Murrow, “he actually flew off.”

“The whole neighborhood was cheering,” according to Dustman, “It was a community thing.”

It wasn’t until the next day when another neighbor, Deb Osborne, discovered the bird of prey. She was on her daily walk when she saw the osprey sitting completely still off to the side of the trail coming off of the Popsicle Bridge into the Sand Creek neighborhood.

“We named it Poppy because it was by the Popsicle Bridge,” said Osborne.

Osborne called Birds of Prey Northwest, a rehabilitation center that specializes in birds of prey.

Terri Ann Poutre, a rescue volunteer and fundraising coordinator at the rehabilitation center, took the osprey back to their facility at Round Lake Point where it underwent approximately two weeks of rehabilitation.

“He hung upside down for over five hours,” said Poutre. “He passed away middle of last week. The circulation just wasn’t coming back in the leg.”

“He just stopped eating completely. We tried tube feeding, everything. It’s always sad when one of the birds dies. We do everything in our power to help. And sometimes it’s just not enough.”

The tree where the bird was stuck will be receiving an osprey nest platform. The owner of the property is working with the rehabilitation center and Travis Miller to create and install the structure.

This summer, Birds of Prey Northwest rehabilitated four times more birds than previous years.

“We will usually get a baby eagle every couple of years. This year, we had over a dozen,” said Poutre. She said the heat was a major contributor to the influx. She explained in an interview with the Daily bee that birds of prey will shade their young with their wings to keep them cool, but this summer, staying in the shade was not enough.

“They weren’t old enough to fly but they couldn’t take the heat in the nest anymore, so they jumped. It wasn’t just eagles. We had hawks and falcons. You name it, we had it.”

“At the peak of it we had over 120 birds at the facility and we usually have 30 birds. It was constant.”

Birds of Prey Northwest will come pick up downed birds of prey who need rehabilitation. They can be reached at 208-245-1367. Anyone who finds a bird of prey is asked to stay in the area to watch the bird until someone from the rehabilitation center arrives.

Even though Poppy did not make it, this is a story about people who came together to give help where it was needed.

“It won’t keep us from trying to save the next one,” Murrow said.