Bald eagle falls into Ohio river, but flies from rescuers. Then, her baby falls
.jpg "Star, a young bald eagle, was rescued by Ohio officials after falling out of her nest.")
Avid birdwatchers saw a mother and baby bald eagles fall just hours apart — so they called for help.
“We care a lot about these eagles,” local birdwatcher John Payne told McClatchy News in a phone interview.
The initial call came in about the mother, Athena, according to Gary Comer at the Ohio Division of Wildlife. She fell from her perch into the adjacent river near Grandview Heights on Friday, Aug. 1, then dragged herself to the shore, Comer said in an email.
She made it back onto her perch, but onlookers noticed her slouched head and closed eyes, according to Comer.
Rescuers arrived and used a boat to get closer to Athena, but Comer said she flew upstream and couldn’t be located.
While looking to help Athena, birdwatchers noticed the baby eagle in the nest, Star, showing similar symptoms to their mother.
“Athena was down on the branch, she had already fallen in the water twice, and Star was face down,” Payne said.
Hours later, rescuers got another call. Star had fallen from the nest and hit the ground, Comer told McClatchy News.
“(Star) lifted her wing up, and the wind caught it and rolled her out,” Payne said. “She just went straight to the ground.” 2
.jpg "Star - Grandview Bald Eagle - John Payne - Wildpiczohio (4).jpg")
She was rescued and taken to the Ohio Bird Sanctuary for critical care, Comer said. Star is now able to stand on her own after days of treatment, and officials are holding out hope that she can make a full recovery.
“She’s a fighter,” Payne said. “So we’re really hoping that we get to have a nice reunion here in the next couple weeks or so. I would love for that to happen.”
Athena returned to her nest the night of Aug. 3, Payne said, and she was reunited with her partner Apollo.
.jpg "Apollo Athena - Grandview Bald Eagles - John Payne - Wildpiczohio (2).jpg")
Grandview Heights is about a 70-mile drive northeast from Dayton.
