The adult red-tailed hawk (nicknamed
”
Dolly
”
because of her extra-fluffy upper body plumage) was found in
January by a swimming pool in a Gilroy backyard, unable to fly away
over the fence. She likely had been sideswiped by a passing vehicle
on nearby Santa Theresa Boulevard, and suffered a concussion. The
hawk was rescued by Santa Clara County Animal Care and Control
officers and brought to the Wildlife Education
&
amp; Rehabilitation Center in Morgan Hill.
The adult red-tailed hawk (nicknamed “Dolly” because of her extra-fluffy upper body plumage) was found in January by a swimming pool in a Gilroy backyard, unable to fly away over the fence. She likely had been sideswiped by a passing vehicle on nearby Santa Theresa Boulevard, and suffered a concussion. The hawk was rescued by Santa Clara County Animal Care and Control officers and brought to the Wildlife Education & Rehabilitation Center in Morgan Hill. Fortunately, Dolly had no external injuries or broken wing. It was evident that she hadn’t been on the ground very long because she was feisty, plump and her feathers were in perfect condition.
A stunning feature of this particular hawk was her gorgeous brunette coloring, called a dark morph. Eighty percent of American red-tailed hawks sport lighter breast feathers and dark morphs are sometimes misidentified as a Swainson’s hawk. Dolly’s distinctive cinnamon-red tail confirmed that she was an uncommon (in western USA; a rarity in eastern USA) version of red-tailed hawk.
Dolly proved to be a bit of a diva in captivity. She was a picky eater and refused to eat the succulent small rodents that were proffered. Unlike most red-tailed hawks, whose diet consists of 85 percent rodentia (mice, rats, gophers, squirrels), Dolly had more posh tastes and showed a strong preference for avian delicacies, i.e., the costlier quail that are normally fed to the falcons.
Because her left clavicle was swollen when she was rescued, possibly due to an older fracture, she was originally confined to a cage to limit movement, reduce stress and aid in healing. A week later, Dolly was transferred to the 100-foot long raptor enclosure to test her flight capabilities. She passed with flying colors.
But Dolly couldn’t be released in the middle of January’s stormy weather. Daily forecasts were anxiously scrutinized until finally, there was a lull in the rain. With the sun shining brightly, the beautiful bird-of-prey was brought to a green field near a pond and trees. After giving Dolly a minute or so to orient herself, she was placed on the ground … where she remained with outstretched wings and glowering at her former captors for 15 minutes. Finally, she shook the dew off her feathers and elegantly flew up into the nearby trees and could be seen basking in the warmth amongst the branches. The dark stranger that flew into town was free to continue her travels.
