In memory of Nero
Beloved turkey vulture ambassador Nero, one of the oldest known turkey vultures in North America, passed away on April 19, 2022 at 47 years of age. He had a lasting impact on conservation and our understanding of his species, and inspired hundreds of thousands as an education ambassador. Nero will be dearly missed.
Letter from the director
This issue of Raptor Release is all about "animal welfare." But just what does that mean and how do we practice that at The Raptor Center? We're excited to bring you this edition of Raptor Release as we are leading the charge in best practices in animal welfare.
Beyond raptors: P4W and the expansion of excellence
The Partners for Wildlife (P4W) grant-funded initiative, founded at The Raptor Center (TRC) in 2018, holds excellence in animal care as its core mission and aims to spread that mission beyond TRC and its avian patients.
Join the flock and help us provide expert animal care all year round
The Raptor Center is leading the way caring for raptors in need thanks to our outstanding community of supporters.
Venturing into the unknown: geriatric raptor care
Raptors that are permanently under human care frequently outlive their wild counterparts. This leads to geriatric health issues that we don't see in wild birds. The Raptor Center is committed to researching and setting the standard for caring for these unique health concerns in older raptor ambassadors.
A team effort to expand our mission
As The Raptor Center (TRC) looks to make larger impacts on animal welfare, raptor medicine, and ecosystem health on a global scale, it relies on a world-class team of experts.
Training to Teach: Raptors undergo a thorough process to take wing as educational ambassadors
Raptors undergo a thorough process to take wing as educational ambassadors. See what it takes to train raptors for this unique role, including exclusive video of some of these techniques.
Raptor Spotlight: Samantha
Meet Samantha, a 30+ year old subarctic great horned owl that has been with The Raptor Center since 1992.
What a relief: raptor pain management
A large proportion of wild raptors admitted to The Raptor Center (TRC) have suffered a traumatic injury. Learn what our team does to help manage their pain and lead the way in researching best practices.
The 2022 outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza
See how The Raptor Center is responding to highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, a strain of bird flu currently spreading across the United States.