For this installment of “Amazing Bird Adventures“, we follow a late night capture inside a pharmaceutical warehouse, where a Cooper’s hawk had invaded the sterile space and needed removing ASAP. Murphy’s law comes into play, but in the end, the BRT’s adapting and overcoming, plus his commitment to capture, win the day.
Setting the scene
The BRT: Mark P.
Based in: Charlotte, NC
The bird: Cooper’s hawk
The partner: a pharmaceutical warehouse in Piedont, SC
I got the call at around 6:00 PM, when everyone else was headed home from their nine-to-five job. Three things caught my attention about the job–it was an emergency, the location was in my hometown, and the bird in question was a hawk. Now, hawk calls are a big rush. They’re always a challenge, even small species like the Cooper’s hawk. Even though this was going to be a night job, I was stoked and my adrenaline was pumping.
Lost in space
When I arrived two hours later, I immediately encountered an unexpected hiccup–the space was huge! This warehouse was the size of two big box stores put together, and normally two or more BRTs are required to capture a bird in a space this large. However, the partner was in a bit of a panic, and forgot to report the size of the space. I was going to have to tackle this job solo. No problem–adapting and overcoming is what we do at Meridian.
The third shift was hard at work preparing vital medicines for shipment. A security guard volunteered to help me look out for the hawk. I gave him a walkie-talkie and we split up to cover opposite ends of the warehouse. We soon spotted the raptor.
Flying the walls
I had a lot of experience with hawks, and knew they would “fly the walls”–hug the corners and edges of the space rather than venture into the open central areas. I set up one of the heavyweight raptor nets and drove the bird toward it. But hawks have incredible eyesight, so this one dodged the net easily. Undeterred, I observed the hawk’s flight patterns, then put up another net in its flight path. That did the trick. Before long, the hawk flew headlong into the net. We had our bird!
Hailing the hawk and the hero
One concern we often have with raptors is their weight and speed. When they hit the nets, they usually tangle themselves up good. That stresses them out, so time is of the essence. Rather than disentangle them, I’ll take surgical scissors and cut the net away, making sure to remove the netting from its feathers. I also place a towel over the bird’s head to calm it. From my many hawk encounters, I knew how to fold its talons so I wouldn’t get clawed (For the record, owls are far more dangerous!). The security guard took pictures, and I released the bird at the edge of the property.
The whole time we were chasing the hawk, the third shift workers watched. They found the chase very exciting, and now they saw how much care I took with the bird. That’s when I realized how valuable our live capture system is. The warehouse workers complimented me on capturing the bird safely and showing concern for its welfare. I came onto the site worried about how I would manage the capture by myself, and I left feeling like a hero. That made the late night drive home worth it.