An injured falcon picked up on the side of State Highway 8 near Lake Tekapo is recuperating in his new long-term home hundreds of kilometres away thanks to a relay team of drivers.
And the New Zealand falcon (kārearea) could still have a bright future ahead for him as part of a breeding programme, despite not being able to be released back into the wild due to his badly injured eye.
The kārearea was described as being “lucky to be alive” when found last week on the side of the busy highway by Tekapo resident Emilie Marinissen, who phoned the Department of Conservation (Doc) hotline.
“I was worried about the kārearea as it was clearly not well, and his eye was badly damaged,” she said.
The concerned Tekapo local did the “right thing” and kept the battered bird calm in a dark box while she waited for Doc staff to come and collect it, Doc principal ranger Dean Nelson said in a statement.
This is where the “falcon taxi” started, Mr Nelson said.
He said Doc staff rang two people they knew were driving down to Twizel from Christchurch for a meeting regarding black stilts (kakī).
Those two were able to pick the injured bird and bring it to Twizel.
He then phoned the local vet.
‘‘He’s Australian and has had a lot of experience with raptors.
‘‘He assessed its eye and wings and advised it needed specialist help at the wildlife hospital in Dunedin.”
Staff at Dunedin Wildlife Hospital discovered the bird had a minor dislocation in its shoulder, an integral part of the bird’s anatomy, essential for supporting its wings.
But the “worst damage was to its left eye”, Mr Nelson said.
“The vet’s advice was it would be risky for it to be released back into the wild as they only hunt with their eyes and it probably wouldn’t survive.”
A home was found in Blenheim at the Kārearea Falcon Trust, which had an opening in its breeding programme.
Doc staff drove the falcon up to Timaru to pass on to the trust’s manager Holly Turner.
She said the kārearea had settled in well and would receive ongoing treatment for his damaged eye until a final vet assessment.
“Once we’re confident his eye is stable, we hope to pair him up with one of our females,” she said.
‘‘Now this lucky bird hopefully has a bright future,” Mr Nelson said.
