Life Is Hazardous for Urban Raptors. These Women Offer Hope.

THE WORLD THROUGH A LENS

Nancy McDonald is a volunteer rescuer at the Owl Moon Raptor Center, an organization based in Boyds that helps rescue and rehabilitate injured raptors — including hawks, owls, eagles and ospreys — before returning them to the wild.

The word “raptor” derives from the Latin verb “rapiō,” meaning “to seize.” All raptors have four characteristics: a hooked beak, sharp talons, keen eyesight and a carnivorous diet.

In some respects, birds of prey that live among human populations have a fragile life cycle. The threats they face include rodenticides (pesticides that kill rodents), entanglement with fishing lines and wires, car strikes and collisions with windows.

Injured birds of prey have a fighting chance to recover thanks to the volunteers at Owl Moon Raptor Center in Boyds, Md.

It’s quiet on the back roads of Boyds, Md., where a small compound studded with bird feeders breaks up the monotony of the surrounding cornfields.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/19/travel/raptor-rehabilitation-owl-moon.html?