Location: 5668 West Flying Hawk Lane, Boise, Idaho 83709 to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday (closed Mondays) to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday (closed Mondays) Visit the Peregrine Fund website for more information. Visiting the World Center for Birds of PreyĬatch the Fall Flights on weekend afternoons from late September to early November. It’s moments like these that showcase the best part of Fall Flights: the ability to truly connect with and experience the wild. Later on, the team finds her perched on a shed near the edge of the property, ready to come home. We don’t punish them for bad behavior or force them to do what we want. “We respect our birds’ ability to choose. “I think she’s flying to outer space!” a boy yelled out in wonder.Įrin laughs nervously, but she knows this is all part of the job. Meanwhile, the audience sits on the edges of their seats, trying to pick her out from the clouds and follow her journey. The team tracks her location as she flies two miles in five minutes. “We’re working with wild animals that can just fly away and never come back, but they choose to come back for us.” It is quickly apparent why the ear plugs are necessary: the bird starts to unleash an onslaught of high-pitched shrieks. In the midst of the commotion, Curtis (one of the falconers) shoves a pair of ear plugs deep into his ears before escorting a red-tailed hawk to the weighing station. The energy almost matches the moment in a locker room before a big game: anxiety, excitement and a looming sense of urgency. They weigh birds, prep the treats, attach transmitters, help the birds into their carriers, and transport them to the arena. Two hours before every show, volunteers, falconers and staff bustle through the narrow hallways that connect bird habitats, offices and storage rooms. He loves to talk.”Įven visitors can have their favorites, and Erin has seen many visitors request to see a particular bird each time they visit. “He’s confident and not spooked by anything. “He’s curious and loves to play,” she said, stroking his head while he playfully chewed on her sweater. (Most of the birds at the facility are either rescued, born and bred on the property, or transported from other conservatories.) He’s practically grown up at the Center, after being transported from a conservatory in Atlanta. Out of all the raptors she works with, Erin’s closest friend is a milky eagle owl, who she’s known since the beginning of his time here. What keeps her coming back after all these years? Her relationship with the birds. She ended up earning degrees in wildlife management and nonprofit administration, eventually leading her and her husband (another wildlife researcher) to move to Southwest Idaho and find a job at the World Center for Birds of Prey. It’s hard to get close to tigers, lions or bears,” Erin says. “For a lot of animals, it’s hard to get close. As a teenager, her mother signed Erin up to volunteer at the Columbus Zoo, unaware that this small decision would later make a big impact on her daughter’s life. “Because when people care about something, they’re willing to do what it takes to protect it.”Įrin knows this first-hand.
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