Red Chief and the Night of the Raptors

My favorite birds: great horned owl (left) and red-tailed hawk.

How do you make a six-year-old kid smile, get goofy, and stare in amazement? Stuff him with pizza and crazy bread and take him to a local gym to see birds. That's what I did with grandson Red Chief last night. And not just any birds . . . birds of prey . . . RAPTORS. The Illinois Raptor Center at Decatur presented an evening with five birds - a kestrel (smallest Illinois hawk), a red-tailed hawk, a barn owl, a great horned owl, and an eagle. The Center is home to 21 permanently disabled raptors, which are known for their sharp talons (claws) and bills. Red Chief and I sat in the front row just a few feet from these beautiful animals.

I have always admired great horned owls ("horns" being the tufts of feather about their ears), which are abundant throughout Illinois. I knew they were fierce hunters, but when one of the handlers opened a box full of stuffed animals, which represented some of the diet of the owl, the audience was amazed: rabbits, skunks, porcupines, cats, mice, and an array of other mammals, even small dogs, were among the stash. The great horned owl swoops down and with its sharp talons grabs its prey, which also includes amphibians, reptiles and fish. But skunks? The great horned has a lousy sense of smell, thus it is the only consistent predator of skunks. It is also a destroyer of other owls.

I took photos of the birds during the presentation, which turned out OK, but I "borrowed" the shots above to better represent two of the beautiful birds. What I really should have photographed was the wide-eyed glee and wonder of my grandson, who woke up this morning and chattered endlessly to his Princess mother about the birds.

As I stared at those proud birds last night, my thoughts drifted to animals in another place - Yellowstone. So much awaits Red Chief and my other grandson, Little Bull: bears, wolves, coyotes, elk . . . and of course the mightly buffalo. Let's hope that wondrous land out West and its wildlife can be preserved as much as possible. It's amazing how wildlife can survive and prosper despite our intrusions on the land. When I saw a red fox dash across my back yard last spring it gave me hope.