Wind Over Wings At Middle Gate

By Tanjua Damon

Seeing wild birds up close is not always that easy, especially if you are on the ground. But first graders at Middle Gate School were able to get an up-close glimpse of several birds of prey thanks to Wind Over Wings.

Hope Douglas of Wind Over Wings Rehabilitation and Education Center in Westbrook brought several birds of prey to visit the students on Tuesday. Ms Douglas explained to the students that some wild birds are unable to be released back into the wild if they get hurt because they cannot feed themselves.

Part of the first grade curriculum asks for students to compare and contrast the characteristics of animals and to show how the characteristics affect an animal’s survival in its habitat. Ms Douglas was able to help the students with this as she spoke to them about wild birds and how they live.

Ms Douglas brought a falcon with her for students to see. It only had one leg as the result of an accident when it got caught in a barn. Falcons use their feet to get food, so this bird is unable to feed itself.

“Sometimes birds need us to rescue them,” she said. “They catch food with their feet. He is designed for speed. For flying. His wings are very long and he has a long tail. He can navigate.”

Falcons have black under their eyes to help keep the glare of the sun down, according to Ms Douglas. Falcons stay up during the day and sleep at night.

Ms Douglas showed the students some things that are bad for birds. She told her rapt audience that plastic soda can holders should be cut into pieces so birds do not get caught in them. Fish hooks and balloons are also hazards to birds.

She also brought a Red Tailed Hawk to visit the students. It lived in a basement for 19 years before the state took it away from someone who found it and kept it. Ms Douglas told the students they should not keep birds but put them back in the nest or contact a veterinarian for help.

The biggest owl in Connecticut, a Great Horned Owl, also made a the trip to Middle Gate. Ms Douglas told the students that Native Americans felt the owl was the best hunter.

“She can hear so well if she were outside in a tree, she could hear a mouse under the snow,” Ms Douglas said. “You can’t hear her wings when she flies.”

The Great Horned Owl also has great eyesight, according to Ms Douglas. If the owl could read, it would be able to see the bottom line of an eye chart and read it a mile away.

Ms Douglas volunteered to bring the educational outreach program to Middle Gate. The school has made a donation to help feed the birds.