Missing red-tailed hawk found

COCKEYSVILLE, Md. — Last April, WMAR told you about a red-tailed hawk that disappeared from the Oregon Ridge Nature Center after a falling tree destroyed its home.

We are happy to announce that Stella has been found after seven long weeks.

“Everyone here was crying, so it was really fun to get her back,” said Kathleen Woods, executive director of the Phoenix Wildlife Center.

It was an emotional moment when the call came in announcing that Stella, the missing red-tailed hawk, had been found.

RELATED: Keep a bird's eye view of an extinct red-tailed hawk

Her guardians didn't know if she would be able to find her.

“We all had a connection and a relationship with this bird and I think after seven weeks and no confirmed sightings of it, we certainly felt like we were losing all hope of finding it,” said Jessica Jeannetta, regional coordinator. of the Baltimore County Department of Recreation and Parks Nature Centers.

Stella is an animal ambassador for the Oregon Ridge Nature Center's educational programs. A place she has lived in since 2021, when she was rescued and deemed non-releasable due to previous injuries.

“She had been hit by a car and was blind in her right eye. As a result of this injury, they also discovered that she had been shot and had shrapnel all over her body,” he said. Jeannetta said.

At the end of April, a tree fell on the nature center. This damaged the building and destroyed the enclosure Stella lived in. The hawk was missing for nearly two months, but Sunday brought a new glimmer of hope.

“We received a phone call to the nature center from a Perry Hall resident, they thought they saw the bird in their yard,” Jeannetta said.

The anklets confirmed that it was indeed the extinct red-tailed hawk. After a successful recapture, an assessment showed some marks on its beak, but the main concern is its weight.

“The fact that she lost 60 percent of her weight is just horrible,” Woods said. “She weighed two pounds and she should weigh close to five pounds.”

The Phoenix Wildlife Center is a rehabilitation facility that cares for injured and orphaned Maryland native wildlife. Currently, Stella is convalescing there. According to Woods, it could take six weeks.

“Every day we increase his food,” Woods said. “The process for any rehabilitated bird is to replace their fluids. They may have lost their maintenance fluids and fluids during their three-day stay. So we're not just giving a cheeseburger to a hungry child.”

The road to recovery will be slow, but the center is grateful for all the help provided during the search for Stella.

“I think getting the word out through all of you was really the right thing to do,” Woods said.