Injured birds make a stopover in Portage Valley

Julie Buehler
Special to the Turnagain Times

This winter, the Begich, Boggs Visitor Center reopened its doors to winter visitation for the first time in two years. In addition to the exhibits and the award winning film, the BBVC teamed up with Bird Treatment and Learning Center (Bird TLC) of Anchorage and offered a series of Sunday afternoon bird presentations. Overall there were a total of 12 different educational presentations featuring rescued birds and their handlers. The series was a hit among the local communities and visitors from outside Alaska alike, many people returning week after week.

The Bird TLC is a non-profit organization dedicated to rehabilitating sick, injured or orphaned wild birds and providing avian education programs to the public. Bird TLC was originally founded in 1988 by an Anchorage veterinarian named Dr. James R. Scott. Scott's vision was to treat sick or injured birds and release them back into their natural habitat. Today, hundreds of birds ranging from tiny chickadees to large raptors come through the clinic's door each year. Overall, the clinic has about a 50 percent success rate.

Because birds need to be at 100 percent to survive in the wild, some birds are non-releasable and therefore join the center's educational program becoming ambassadors for their species to the general public.

Each week, a volunteer handler from Bird TLC brought a different live Alaskan bird to the visitor center and engaged audiences with fun facts and useful information about the birds and Bird TLC. One of the biggest stars was Sparky, the one-winged Bald Eagle. Sparky was brought to Bird TLC in 2005 after he electrocuted his wing in a flying accident. Unable to return to a normal life in the wild, Sparky joined the educational team in 2006. This weekend, over 50 children and adults joined Sparky and his handler, Kristin Guinn, to learn more about Bald Eagles and their natural habitat. In addition to Sparky, some of the other birds that participated included; Willow the one-eyed Magpie that said “hello,” Denali the Golden Eagle, and various hawks, owls, falcons and other birds.

The staff of the Glacier Ranger District is thrilled to re-open the doors of the BBVC this winter and is extremely grateful for the efforts made by the Bird Learning and Treatment Center in offering this program to the public.

And thank you to all the handlers and birds that visited.