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Show PAGE 20 THE ZEPHYRNOVEMBER 1990 EAGLES ON HIGHWAY by Damian Fagan Interstate 70. Westbound. The "Welcome to Utah sign fades Into the distance. Enter the seemingly desolate landscape of the last great Cretaceous seas. The Interstate runs straight, like a paper cut, slashing across this land of shadscale and slltstone. Unlike its cousin, 190 to the Geek North, this road Is not choked with the "See the billboard forests. So when the small diamond shaped, orange with black lettering sign appears, It stands out Eagles on Hwy. Where? the kids shout, faces pressed against glass, scanning the desert for these unknown birds. A solitary Raven, perched atop a fence post, Is unjustly accused of being one. As the car speeds westward, a dark figure looms on the highway. Distances are deceiving, for suddenly the figure is too close. The car swerves Into the other land to avoid the "truckers tire. Now alive, a six-fo-ot wingspan spreads and with deep, powerful beats, legs dangling like landing gear, the eagle gets airborne. Eagles on Hwy. Some such incidents do not always end up so favorably, however. Two-Hea- ded "We get about 50 (birds a year) and the numbers havent changed that much. Predominant are Golden and second would be Great-horn- ed Owls. Weve gotten every species that you would normally find in this Owls and some of the smaller owls." The area, except for Short-ear- ed accidents are as varied as the birds: vehicular collisions, nestlings falling out of their nests, electrocutions, shot birds (some not accidentally) or those who are victims In the predator-sto- ck poisoning war that the west Is trapped In. Feeding on carcasses laced with strychnine (designed to coyotes) the eagles, ravens and magpies become victims of this misguided war. kill Or did not. "When we had that one winter, with eleven or twelve Golden Eagles involved In vehicular accidents on the highway.... just destroying the birds.... it was upsetting the Division (Division of Natural Resources) and ourselves, Marilyn Bickings related to me. She and her husband, John, are the raptor rehabilitators here in Moab. The Bickings gave DNR records of all the birds that they had seen as patients since 1985. Interstate 70 and Highway 191 appeared under the "Location column repeatedly. Marilyn and others suspected that the majority of birds were feeding on carrion (road kills), when the accidents happened. A plan was outlined to attempt to reduce this high number of collisions. The strategy was simple. Remove favorable hunting perches, usually associated with power and telephone poles, that were adjacent to the highway and place warning signs along the interstate. After the dust settled, Utah Power and Light modified three of their poles at milepost 213, by placing metallic triangles atop the horizontal bars. US West modified one of their poles at milepost 208. In addition, UDOT placed six warning signs along both lanes of travel, which notified the public of the potential hazards. When asked If the numbers were down, Marilyn responded, "Weve gotten a few, still.... Interestingly enough we still get them on 191, but the numbers are way down. Several factors: low prairie dog populations, expansion of hunting territories, the above alterations or combination thereof, could be responsible for this successful program. The primary goal is important, however, eagles are flying not dying. Other birds of prey, such as owls and hawks, are involved in vehicular accidents, also. These birds are either so focused on the hunt or are already down on the roadway feeding, that they are unaware of the oncoming traffic. Some of these birds are not involved on Interstate collisions, but on other roads throughout the county. As a rehabilltator, Marilyn has seen a great variety of raptors come into her home. sir SUPERIOR ENERGY SYSTEMS AROBERT SOLDAT When a bird is brought in, an examination for injuries or illnesses is conducted, are taken, If needed, and then a determination Is made for the birds rehabilitation. If no injuries are present, attempts are made, especially in the case of nestlings, to return the bird back to its exact nest For other birds, it's down time In the clinic to heal their Injuries. The Bickings backyard Is a menagerie of cages and aviaries, with different residents In various stages of recuperation. Some of these residents will not make It back into the wild. Their injuries are so extensive, that they would not be able to successfully hunt on their own. For others, when they can demonstrate their return-to-hea- lth hunting X-r- ays RV Solar Electric camp anywhere easy to live with o quiet automatice operation 12 volt or regular house current durable, reliable installations CATALOG AND DESIGN GUIDE, CVSR 2510 100 PAGES $3 Moab, Utah 84532 (801) 259-7638 OO |
