Nearly Blind in One Eye and With a Head Wound, Now Recovered Eagle to Be Released In Contra Costa County

An injured golden eagle found in San Ramon in March will be released back into the wild Friday, officials at the Lindsay Wildlife Rehabilitation Hospital in Walnut Creek said.

The eagle was found on the sidewalk by San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District firefighters outside a fire station on March 27, and brought to the wildlife hospital for treatment.

She was disoriented and crashed into windows as she tried to fly, and doctors determined she had suffered severe head trauma from an unknown cause and was nearly blind in her left eye.

The fully-healed, 12-pound eagle, which is thought to be around three years old, will be released at Las Trampas Regional Park at an event attended by the firefighters who helped rescue her, hospital officials said.

The bird had previously had a GPS tracker placed on her in 2013 for an East Bay Regional Park District study, but that transmitter had died around the end of 2014. She will be released with new tracking equipment so scientists can continue to observe her movements from afar.

Prior to her hospitalization, the eagle was tracked moving often between Mt. Diablo, Morgan Territory, Las Trampas, Pleasanton Ridge, Dublin Hills, Livermore Hills and Altamont.

“Working with this bird has been a tremendous priviledge,” said Dr. Guthrum Purdin, the director of veterinary services at the hospital, in a statement. “She has a lot of heart and even for an eagle is very fierce.”

“Getting to see her back in the wild, with the sky under her wings, is the best part of my job,” Purdin said.

• Related: 1,000 Critters Being Treated at Lindsay Wildlife Rehab Hospital

--Story and Photo Bay City News

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