APOLLO

Broad-winged Hawk | Buteo Platypterus

Broad-Winged Hawks are a crow-sized hawk with brown back shoulders, and head. Their chest is white with medium red-brown barring. Their tail has two dark brown stripes with one wide white stripe between them. The adult male and adult female Broad-Winged Hawks are similar in appearance and hard to tell apart. The immature Broad-Winged Hawks have a dark brown head, neck, and shoulders with some white edging. Their tail is a light brown with four or five dark brown bands. They have a white chest with light to heavy streaks of brown. Broad-Winged Hawks are usually found near mixed forests and swamps. They live and nest in hollow oak or maple trees and rarely leave the forest to hunt. The nest is usually supported by three branches, and is made out of dead wood, bark and feathers that line the nest. Broad-Winged hawks can be seen migrating from New England along mountain ridges. Broad-Wings will normally migrate in scatter flocks or together in small groups. Broad-Winged Hawks eat a large variety of small mammals, but have been known to eat small lizards and amphibians as well.

Apollo came to us in the summer of 2016. Both of our broad-winged hawks fell from their nests and sustained similar wing injuries which leave them unable to fly.

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ATHENA & NOMI

Peregrine Falcon | Falco Peregrinus

Peregrine Falcons are the fastest animals on earth, reaching speeds close to 200 mph as they dive after their prey, which consists almost entirely of other birds. Peregrines were almost completely gone from much of the east coast of the U.S. due in large part to the pesticide DDT. Through captive breeding programs and reintroduction, they have made an extraordinary comeback. They have also adapted quite well to living in cities where they often nest on high rise buildings.

Athena was found injured at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, CT. Her right wing was abraded and missing primary feathers, which are crucial in a bird’s flight. In rehab we allowed her to go through a molt (losing old feathers and growing new ones). As the new primaries grew, they would break before reaching their full length. It was determined that there was probably some irreversible nerve and tissue damage to the wing and she would not be able to be released.

Nomi was found in summer of 2016 in Bristol, CT. We estimate at the time she was 2 years old. She had somehow sustained a severe wing injury that left her without the tip of her right wing.

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SKYWALKER

Golden Eagle | Aquila Chrysaetos

The golden eagle (Aquila Chrysaetos) is a member of the Booted or True Eagles family. Golden eagles can be found throughout much of the northern hemisphere. They lives in mountainous areas, prairie coulees, and other places where rugged terrain creates abundant updrafts. Size - Height of about 3 feet (.92m), weighing up to 15 pounds (7kg), with a wing span of up to 7 feet (2m).

Skywalker was shot from the sky as a 2 year old bird in 1992. In order to save his life, his left wing was amputated. This is a difficult decision, (one that is now outlawed by the USFW) as a bird not only loses it flight, the ability to retain heat as well as their loss of balance. He is originally from Nebraska. Skywalker stayed with Hope Douglas at Wind over Wings for many years before being transferred to Horizon Wings in October of 2016. Skywalker has done to date over 3,000 educational programs.

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CYPRESS & CESSNA

Red-Shouldered Hawk | Buteo Lineatus

Red-Shouldered Hawks are a common hawk in Connecticut. They are related to the larger Red-Tailed Hawk and the smaller Broad-Winged Hawk. Red-Shoulders prefer to live in woodlands near water, and they feed on small mammals, birds, snakes and amphibians. Red-Shoulders can be identified by their orange barred chest and checkerboard-like markings on their wings; they also have a red shoulder patch and a narrow black and white banded tail. In flight, they have a distinctive white crescent mark near the tips of their wings. Red-Shoulders are also very vocal with a piercing kee-ah call.

Cypress was hit by a car in Florida, which resulted in a permanent injury to his right wing. He first came to Connecticut under the care of Teresa Kramer of Canton Raptor Care and then was transferred to Horizon Wings in the spring of 2012. Red-Shouldered Hawks from Florida are slightly smaller and paler in color than northern birds.

Cessna was injured in Florida in 2014. She was struck by car resulting in severe feather damage on all of the feathers on the tip of one of her wings. These feathers no longer grow in properly and break very easily. Cessna originally went to Hope Douglas of Wind over Wings in Dresden, ME. When Hope retired in the summer of 2017 Cessna was transferred to Horizon Wings and now is a permanent resident.

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BREEZE & FINN

American Kestrel | Falco Sparverius

Kestrels are a member of the Falcon family. They are the smallest falcons living in North America, and are currently on the special concern list in Connecticut as their numbers have seen a dramatic decrease in the last decade. Some of the theories for this decrease are loss of habitat (Kestrels prefer open areas such as farmland), pesticide use (Kestrels prey on many types of insects), and predation by larger birds of prey (there is an increasing Cooper’s Hawk population in Connecticut). Unlike many raptors the male and female kestrel are marked quite differently.

Finn came to us in summer of 2016 from eastern Connecticut with a severe head trauma. Due to the severity of his injury and his young age, he became imprinted on humans and is not releasable.

Breeze (AVAILABLE SOON) came to us the winter of 2020 as a three year old from Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Northern Utah. She is a female kestrel who has a permanent injury to her right wing that keeps her from being a fully flighted bird.

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JADE

Eastern Screech Owl |Megascops Asio

Screech owls get their name from the wailing call they make, but most often their call is a soft trilling sound that is similar to the whinny of a horse. Screech owls nest in cavities in trees and are extremely hard to see although are probably one of the most common raptors in CT. Red and gray forms will nest together and sometimes have young that are a brownish color. Screech owls have asymmetrical hearing, meaning one ear is larger and sits up higher on their head. This helps them to locate their prey by listening before they look for it.

Jade is a gray form eastern screech owl. Jade was presumed to be hit by a car when he was found in a driveway huddled under a car on a rainy morning. The car strike damaged one eye severely enough that it had to be surgically removed. The remaining eye has limited vision which leaves him unable to be released.

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KEEGAN

Northern Saw-whet Owl | Aegolius Acadicus

Keegan is a Northern Saw-whet owl who came to Horizon Wings in April of 2019 when she was found in a barn on the ground with a wing injury. After she was examined by our avian vet and determined to be non-releasable, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife gave us permission to keep her.

Northern Saw-whet owls are on the special concern list in Connecticut due largely to loss of habitat. They nest in cavities, preferring holes in dead trees made by woodpeckers. Their main prey is small mice, but they will also take a variety of birds, and have been documented taking birds as large as cardinals. They are found over much of the northern United States, southern Canada, and down through the mountain ranges of southern California. Saw-whets are migratory owl and will travel as far as the southernmost part of the United States to find their prey during the winter months.

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OAKLEY

Eastern Screech Owl |Megascops Asio

Screech owls get their name from the wailing call they make, but most often their call is a soft trilling sound that is similar to the whinny of a horse. Screech owls nest in cavities in trees and are extremely hard to see although are probably one of the most common raptors in CT. Red and gray forms will nest together and sometimes have young that are a brownish color. Screech owls have asymmetrical hearing, meaning one ear is larger and sits up higher on their head. This helps them to locate their prey by listening before they look for it.

Oakley and her siblings were hand raised from a very young age after their nest tree was taken down. Despite being given directions to take them to the local Audubon where they would have been fostered into other nests, the owlets were given to the finder's friend who raised them for 2 months before turning them over to the Audubon. Being raised by humans, and played with by children, these birds imprinted upon humans and are not releasable.

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ROCKET

Broad-winged Hawk | Buteo Platypterus

Broad-Winged Hawks are a crow-sized hawk with brown back shoulders, and head. Their chest is white with medium red-brown barring. Their tail has two dark brown stripes with one wide white stripe between them. The adult male and adult female Broad-Winged Hawks are similar in appearance and hard to tell apart. The immature Broad-Winged Hawks have a dark brown head, neck, and shoulders with some white edging. Their tail is a light brown with four or five dark brown bands. They have a white chest with light to heavy streaks of brown. Broad-Winged Hawks are usually found near mixed forests and swamps. They live and nest in hollow oak or maple trees and rarely leave the forest to hunt. The nest is usually supported by three branches, and is made out of dead wood, bark and feathers that line the nest. Broad-Winged hawks can be seen migrating from New England along mountain ridges. Broad-Wings will normally migrate in scatter flocks or together in small groups. Broad-Winged Hawks eat a large variety of small mammals, but have been known to eat small lizards and amphibians as well.

Rocket came to us in the summer of 2015. Both of our broad-winged hawks fell from their nests and sustained similar wing injuries which leave them unable to fly.

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TANSY

Eastern Screech Owl | Megascops Asio

Screech Owls get their name from the wailing call they make, but most often their call is a soft trilling sound that is similar to the whinny of a horse. Screech Owls nest in cavities in trees and are extremely hard to see although are probably one of the most common raptors in CT. Red and gray forms will nest together and sometimes have young that are a brownish color. Screech Owls have asymmetrical hearing, meaning one ear is larger and sits up higher on their head. This helps them to locate their prey by listening before they look for it.

Tansy is a reddish brown eastern screech owl. She came into rehabilitation at Horizon Wings in 2013 after being struck by a car in northeastern Connecticut. This resulted in the loss of her right eye. She was transferred to Hope Douglas of Wind Over Wings in 2013 and spent the next 3 years there before being transferred back to us when Hope retired.

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BEAMER - Our Ambassador & Mascot

Eastern Box Turtle

Beamer came to Horizon Wings approximately 12 years ago, when Mary-Beth was working at Bolton Veterinary Hospital. Beamer was brought into the hospital suffering from a severe upper respiratory infection. During her treatment, it was discovered she was missing a hind leg, which made it difficult for her to get around. To make it easier on her, Dr. Zyra came up with the idea of making a prosthesis from a Lego trike. The idea worked, and Beamer soon became a wonderful ambassador and mascot for Horizon Wings.

Box Turtles are on a special concern list in Connecticut due to loss of habitat. Their habitat includes woodlands, swamps and grassy meadows. They get their name from their ability to close themselves up like a box when threatened. They have been known to live 50 years or more.

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