Megan Mosby
Executive Director
The past week seems like a blur there has been so much going on…all good.
Tuesday was a neighborhood release, in my neighborhood, of a great horned owl that originated in that area. Joe and Jan came along with two education birds, an owl and a Harris’ hawk to let the ‘hood’ get a closer glimpse and learn more about these important neighbors of ours. The crowd was pleased. I see every release as an opportunity to education about the beauty and benefits of our wildlife.
Thursday saw a large group of people introduced to Liberty Wildlife’s new campus as a potential venue for events from weddings to corporate meetings to private events and destinations. We had naked (lighted poles without their skirts) teepees, a caricaturist, music, a photo booth, fabulous food and a fully stocked bar. There were animals, handlers, an emcee, and lots of fun…all brought to you by Out of the Blue Events.
Then on Friday I got to do one of my favorite things…orchestrate a release of some of our rehabilitated animals north of the valley. There were kestrels, male and female. There were two screech owls and two barn owls. All had a different location for releasing and each had a different time to fly away. As always, some education ensues. The crowd was wowed!
And then, the best, at this year’s Arizona Forward’s Environmental Excellence Awards Liberty Wildlife walked away with not only a merit award for the SRP Award for Environmental Stewardship, but also two Crescordia Awards for Buildings and Structures/Commercial and Institutional and the Special Achievement in Environmental Excellence, The President’s Award. From Arizona Forward’s brochure, these awards “serve as a benchmark for promoting sustainability, conserving natural resources and preserving our unique desert environment for future generations. The coveted Crescordia, which means to grow in harmony, is given as the highest honor in each category.”
We are very proud to have our work recognized by such notable organizations. Thank you to all.
It does seem that the arm of Liberty Wildlife gets longer and stronger as time goes by. My thanks go out to everyone who had a part in making all of this happen…and there are many!
This Week @ Liberty – September 25, 2017
We have definitely reached the backside of the year in terms of intakes, but we never really stop getting in injured animals. One of the main differences we see is that now we rarely need the small “single-wide” berry baskets at the window as the arrivals are now mainly yearling birds that are mostly more of an adult size. Some are still small as we’ll see below… A few adults come in – the GHOs, the ducks and cormorants, the red tails and kestrels – but still it’s mostly youngsters learning the ropes.
As the temps drops, we’re turning up the volume on events to keep the flow of funding going as we head into our second year at the new facility. Don’t forget to check the website for upcoming shows and educational happenings designed to stimulate thought and get everyone into the spirit of giving at the end of the year!
Let’s see what we had happen in the last fortnight…
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A cormorant was brought in with an injured wing and other undetermined issues. Upon examination, it was surmised he had possibly been shot and this was confirmed by radiology. Several metal pellets were discovered conclusively proving someone had used this bird as a target. C’mon folks, there is no “Cormorant Season” in Phoenix and shooting these birds is not only cruel and unjustified, it’s also illegal.
Currently we are treating an American Wigeon for a wing injury. I have always loved wigeons since my very first airplane ride 64 years ago was in a Grumman Wigeon, a totally cool amphibian airplane! We also have in our care a couple of great horned owls, one of which was transported to us by a generous lady all the way from the San Pedro River basin below Sierra Vista. I was told the bird had been named “Sonnie” despite the fact that we don’t usually name animals that might still be candidates for release, but the name seemed apt, though this GHO is very dark in color. Unfortunately, Sonnie has two fractured wings and it is doubtful he will be releasable in the long run, but for now, he is awaiting further surgery to pin the breaks. In any case, he is a very handsome bird with a good temperament. I’ll keep you posted.
OK, so I said we are getting in mainly larger, adult size animals recently, but just to prove me to be uninformed, we also got in some little creatures, most of which are near 10 on the cute-as-can-be scale. Verdins are some of the cutest birds around, looking like babies even when they are adults. Then we have the newborn antelope squirrel that was brought in from a campsite up on the Mogollon rim. To round out the small baby mammals we have yet another little cottontail rabbit who has joined or ever-growing crowd of bunnies. My message to lagomorphs everywhere: Please give breeding a rest – for a little while anyway! Then duck rehabber par-excellence Patty Smith (from East Valley Wildlife) sent Carl Price over with a day-or-so old baby sulcata tortoise she found in her yard. The strange thing is, she knows of no one in her neighborhood who owns a sulcata so finding a baby that young in her backyard is very strange indeed! (Carl said he doesn’t often get to bring in animals in his shirt pocket when he does a rescue!)
One of the events Laura set up recently was “Teachers Day” at Liberty so educators could come to the facility and see what we have to offer. The event was fairly well attended and it appears everyone enjoyed the opportunity to tour the new facility and experience “Liberty Wildlife” first-hand.
Out of the Blue sponsored an event here last week in order to introduce Liberty Wildlife to some people who book things like weddings, parties, corporate meetings, etc. It is hoped our facility can be used to generate rental income in order to help pay for our new home over time plus gain us exposure to more people within and without the Valley of the Sun. It was a very pleasant evening which seemed to be enjoyed by all who attended.
Posted by Terry Stevens
Operations Director