Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here's a new section of the site we can work together to build. Here's a list of FAQs that visitors often ask. I'm thinking we can all list how each of us respond (I've put mine is as a starting point), and then this will be an excellent sharing page. If there are conflicting responses, we'll defer to the Education staff for a 'final answer'. :-) I'm thinking this page will be particularly helpful for new RVIs in the future.
"How many species of raptors are there in DuPage County, and in North America?"
"Why do you spray him/her with water?" - "Why is he/she panting?"
"Isn't it too cold for him/her?" - "Do you take the animals inside in the winter?"
"How long do raptors live in the wild? in captivity?"
"Does he/she mind being on the glove? or being in captivity?"
"Does he/she stay with the others out on exhibit trail?" - "Where does he/she live?"
"Can owls really turn their heads all the way around? 360 degrees?"
"Do ALL owls have asymmetrically placed ears?"
"Why are Otis and Ayasha different colors, but the same species?"
"Did you kill the bird to get those feet/wing/skull?"
"How big (or small) can raptors be?" NEW!!
Can you think of any other FAQs? - let Anne Marie know.
"How many species of raptors are there in DuPage County, and in North America?"
Ron's response:
"There are 21 species of raptors seen in northeastern Illinois (including DuPage County). Some are common species such as the Red-tailed Hawk and others are more rare such as the Red-shouldered Hawk and Northern Goshawk. There are approximately 50 species of birds of prey in North America."
Kerri's response:
Kerrie finds it works well to use the phrase "this bird is trained, not tame." Then she goes on to explain the difference.Anne Marie's response:
"Actually, I can't even pet him/her. This animal was born and raised in the wild and is not a pet. I ASK him/her to get on my glove and he/she can CHOOSE to get on my glove or not. I love Harry Potter movies, but what you see in the Harry Potter movies is not real. In fact, if you look closely at the movies you'll see Hedwig is often not moving at all, because they've put a doll there, or she's often animated. Maybe I could try to touch this bird's foot once, but he/she wouldn't like it. If I tried a second time he/she might give me a warning, third time he/she probably would bite me. I want him/her to feel comfortable so I don't touch her. And I want to respect that sharp beak and those sharp talons on his/her feet. That's why I wear this very thick glove and hold her out here away from my face. So let's just enjoy him/her with our eyes... he/she's very beautiful, isn't he/she? See how big his/her eyes are?..." And I try to lead into something else about their appearance that I haven't talked about yet...
"Why do you spray him/her with water?" - "Why is he/she panting?"
Anne Marie's response:
"I spray him/her with water to help him/her stay cool. In the winter the raptors are just fine because it is like they're wearing a down jacket all year round. Down feathers are very close to a bird’s body and help to trap the warmth generated by their bodies. In winter, the down feathers do a great job of keeping the birds warm. On a hot day in summer, however, this heat trapping ability of down is a disadvantage for birds. Birds don’t have sweat glands like we do to help cool us. Birds cool off by panting, like your dog does, or submerging their feet in water to cool down. Notice when I spray I focus on his/her feet. That's because there are many blood vessels going to/from his/her feet. If you ever see our eagles standing in their pools, that's why, they're trying to keep cool." If I get a question about how they stay cool in the wild, I often say that they don't move around in the summer, they rest in shady areas and wait for a cooler day to hunt.
"Isn't it too cold for him/her?" - "Do you take the trail animals inside in the winter?"
Anne Marie's response:
"Actually, raptors are very well adapted for winter. They have down feathers all year round. In fact, summer is more dangerous for them. So all the animals stay out all winter long. The Animal Care staff know a lot about how the wild animals survive and provide all the outside animals here with what they need to keep warm - hay, blankets, heated water dishes, etc."
"How long do raptors live in the wild? in captivity?"
Anne Marie's response:
"The first challenge is to survive into adulthood - two years. Many of the raptors we get in for treatment are younger birds out on their own for the first time. They make stupid mistakes - just like humans do when we're young - and end up here. We humans put quite a few challenges out there for them with cars, trucks, fishing/hunting litter, etc. And they have natural challenges like extreme weather, being a good hunter, etc. However, if they can survive the first two years, they have a good chance of longer term survival. Over 70% of raptors never see their first birthday. Also the size of the bird is a big part of how long they live. The smaller raptors generally don't live as long as the larger raptors. Smaller raptors like the screech owl live in the wild probably for an average of 8 years. Larger raptors like the red-tailed hawk live in the wild probably for an average of 10-15 years. The largest raptors (eagles) live in the wild probably for an average of 20-30 years. Of course all the raptors live longer in captivity (if they're well cared for). We have a Great Horned Owl that's been here since fall of 1991! And I've heard of an Eagle that lived in captivity for 40 years! Knowing for sure has been a challenge because you can't tell how old a bird is once it reaches adulthood, so it's been a challenge for scientists, but they're working on it."
Anne Marie's response:
"You know, I'm not sure. Maybe... it's nice to think she might. But it's very likely they just think of the 'green shirts' as bringers of food. In fact, I sometimes wonder if I confuse them because right now I'm the only 'green shirt' that sometimes comes in to clean and bring food, and sometimes comes in to get them on the glove. I do know that there are some birds that seem more relaxed with me than other birds. Also, some birds I have no trouble at all with and other raptor handlers say they have a tough time. And then there are birds that I have a tough time with that the other handlers say are a piece of cake. So maybe it's more a matter of compatibility. I think it's important not to take it personally when they act up. Rather, it's better to just accept them wherever they are and not demand a connection that they might not be capable of. Regardless of whether they know me personally or not, I thank them everytime I get them off the glove for giving me some of their time."
"Does he/she mind being on the glove? or being in captivity?"
Anne Marie's response:
"I'm not sure. I do know in the wild, they would have to work really hard to find food, keep cool/warm, sometimes evade predators, heal, etc. Here they get all the mice they could want, easy access to fresh water, protection from predators, better medical care than most people on the planet... they have a really good life here. And all we ask of them is to sit on the glove now and again so we can educate folks and make people aware of how GORGEOUS they are. All in all, that's a good situation if one can get it."
"Does he/she stay with the others out on exhibit trail?" - "Where does he/she live?"
Anne Marie's response:
"All the education birds stay in a central facility called the Raptors Dorms. These dorms are not in an area where the public can go. The only exception is Zeus, our Peregrine Falcon. (I usually point Zeus out.) Along with our education birds, we also store our equipment in the dorms. When preparing fo a program, it is much easier for us to gather our birds and equipment in one central location than if they were scattered throughout Willowbrook."
"Can owls really turn their heads all the way around? 360 degrees?"
Anne Marie's response:
"It looks like they can, but no, they can't. They can turn it about 270 degrees - which is much further than we can. It looks like 360 degrees because they turn their shoulders a bit. Actually the reason they can turn that far is that they can't do this. (I point to my own eyes, and look left and right without moving my head.) Their eyes are so big so they can see at night, that there's no room for the muscles needed to do this. (I demonstrate again.) So they have developed the adaptations of turning their heads so they can see prey and predators around them. They actually have twice as many neck (cervical) vertebrae than we do. We have seven neck vertebrae and owls have fourteen."
"Do ALL owls have asymmetrically placed ears?"
Response from Gill's Ornithology (2nd edition), page 193:
" In many owls, the external ears and in some cases the skull are bilaterally asymmetrical, a condition that aids precise location of prey." (So it seems that SOME owls, not ALL owls have asymmetrically placed ears.)Response from Ron:
"Most of the research on owl hearing involved Barn Owls. Payne's research (1971) determined that Barn Owls can pinpoint sounds within 1 degree of accuracy on both the vertical and horizontal plane"
"Why are Otis and Ayasha different colors, but the same species?"
Response based on information from Wilmington News Journal (Ohio) online article (summarized by Anne Marie):
"Screech owls come in multiple 'phases', primarily red and gray. Ayasha is a red and Otis is a gray. Even though they are different phases, they can still mate and have fertile offspring, so they are still the same species. (That is basically the definition of a species.) Gray phase screech owls tend to prefer gray mates, and red phase screech owls tend to prefer red mates. When same color owls mate, all their babies are the same color as them. However, when and a red and a gray DO mate, they can have brown phase owls. (I haven't been able to determine what happens when/if two brown phase owls mate.) Because of the color preference in mating behavior, scientists believe the red and gray phases are very slowly becoming different species (a evolutionary process called speciation). Even though the red phase is the genetically dominant trait of the two, the gray phase must provide gray owls with a survival/reproductive advantage or there would be fewer grays, and actually there tend to be more grays. Scientists aren't sure if this advantage is the coloring itself, or if gray coloring is linked to another gene which is the actual advantage - they're working on an answer. Red phase owls are found more often in pine forests, and gray phase owls are found more often in deciduous forests. This is likely because their different colorings helps them hide better from prey and predators in these different habitats."(This can be confusing for younger and less interested audiences, so of course simplify this based on your audience accordingly. For younger people, I often say "a white person and a black person can have a baby that is often a middle skin color... right? It's kind of like that with Screech owls"... and leave it with that. Evolutionarily speaking, this is a very similar example because if different ethnicities of humans hadn't encountered each other for another hundred/thousand millenia, we may have evolved into seperate species as well... but we DID encounter each other because of ocean travel, being able to get over HUGE mountain ranges, etc. so we will remain the same species. Now if we can just learn to encounter each other peacefully....)
"Did you kill the bird to get those feet/wing/skull?" (for outreach programs)
Ron's response:
" No, we didn’t hurt any animals to get these “biofacts” that we brought you today. Remember, in the introduction, when I said that we are from a special wildlife animal hospital? Last year, we had over 7,900 animals brought to us. Sometimes, even though the kind people do their best to rush an injured animal to our doors, the animal might not survive and sometimes they die. We have a special permit (show permit) from the U.S. government that gives us permission to use some animal parts from those animals that died, strictly for education purposes. That’s why we can let you see these “biofacts” up close. We would never hurt an animal. I want to make sure everyone understands, OK? Are you all OK with this?"
"How big (or small) can raptors be?"
Anne Marie's response:
"There are 500 species of birds of prey in the world. The smallest is the Elf Owl which is only 5 inches and 1.5 ounces. The largest is the Andean Condor which has an 11-foot wingspan and can weigh 30 pounds."