Fly Down The Field!

A new tradition has been born at Auburn University football games — War Eagle VI is delighting the fans by flying untethered from high in the stadium to the 50-yard line. After being trained at the Southeastern Raptor Rehabilitation Center over the summer, the magnificent golden eagle is gracefully soaring onto the field before each home game.

War Eagle VI, nicknamed Tiger, began the season by flying from the goal post at the Auburn-Wyoming football game, and she has progressed to taking flight from the club level. She is also making game-day appearances to promote wildlife conservation as part of the raptor center’s environmental education efforts.

Last spring, the raptor center became the primary caretaker for Tiger, who is at Auburn by permission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. She resides at both the Southeastern Raptor Rehabilitation Center and the Hamer Aviary next to Jordan-Hare Stadium.

This 21-year-old eagle came to Auburn in 1986 from the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Raptor Rehabilitation Facility at Land Between the Lakes, Kentucky. She weighs 11 pounds, has a wingspan of seven and one-half feet, and her talons can squeeze down with a grip of 450 pounds per square inch. To put it into perspective, the average person has a grip of 20 pounds per square inch.

Tiger’s role as the symbol of Auburn’s fighting spirit has been expanded to help promote wildlife education on issues such as hazards facing birds of prey. For example, one significant problem occurred in the 1970s, when the environmental contaminant DDT severely reduced raptor populations to a point where survival hinged on help from concerned citizens.

While golden eagles were not affected as critically as bald eagles, all raptors faced destruction due to DDT which destroyed egg shells and, as a result, halted reproduction. The situation was so serious that our national symbol, the American bald eagle, was placed on the endangered species list. 

All birds of prey serve as sentinels in the environment because they are among the first animals to display effects of contaminants that will eventually harm other species, including humans. Fortunately, a group from Auburn University’s College of Veterinary Medicine began an intensive effort to treat and rehabilitate raptor populations, which led to creation of the Southeastern Raptor Rehabilitation Center. Thanks to this effort, and similar ones, the American bald eagle was removed from the endangered species list on July 4, 1999, and other previously threatened birds, such as golden eagles, continue their resurgence.

Today, the raptor center serves as one of the top authorities in the nation on birds of prey. The mission is to rehabilitate injured or orphaned raptors, educate the public and scientific community, and research new aspects of raptor biomedicine.

Over the years, thousands of injured raptors have been admitted to the raptor center, including many golden eagles, after suffering gunshot wounds or other injuries. The center has rehabilitated and released almost 40 percent of the raptors back into the wild, which is one of the highest percentages in the country. A record 454 birds of prey were treated in 1999.

The Southeastern Raptor Rehabilitation Center has earned national recognition from the National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association for award-winning research in raptor biomedicine and for their rehabilitation and environmental education efforts. For information on how to be a volunteer or support SERRC, call (334) 844-6025.