FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 9, 2004

Contact: Lisa Green (802) 457-2779 ext. 107, lgreen@vinsweb.org

VINS RELEASES BROAD-WINGED HAWK TO HONOR PARTNERSHIP WITH FIRE STONES RESTAURANT 

QUECHEE -   Imagine the thrill of holding a live Broad-Winged Hawk in your hands and setting it free to reclaim its place in the forest. Thanks to the Vermont Institute of Natural Science (VINS), one lucky Fire Stones Restaurant employee and one lucky Broad-Winged Hawk will experience this thrill on Monday, September 13, 2004 at 4:00 pm in Hawk Meadow at the VINS Nature Center in Quechee, Vermont. The public is invited to celebrate the successful rehabilitation and release of this hawk with VINS and Fire Stones' staff as they commemorate their new corporate partnership involving the new VINS Nature Center. Interested spectators should meet in Hawk Meadow, the outdoor ampitheatre area, at the VINS Nature Center. If you've never seen a bird release before, do not miss this opportunity. It promises to be an extremely moving and joyous experience for all who witness it.  

The Broad-Winged Hawk was found in Barre City by the Lepage Gravel Pit by Morris Lasell. It had been hit by a truck. Lasell took the hawk to the Central VT Humane Society, who then contacted VINS and later transported it to VINS' rehabilitation center in Woodstock. VINS rehabilitators examined the bird and determined that it was a "hatch year" bird, meaning it was hatched just this summer, however, it was old enough to have been on its own without its parents. Rehabilitators found the bird unsteady and disoriented, but with proper care and feeding it has recovered nicely.

Broad-Winged Hawks are native to Vermont and other states in New England. They spend their springs and summers up here and migrate to South and Central America in the Fall.  Broad-Wing Hawks are classified as birds of prey, also known as raptors.  Other raptors include eagles, falcons, ospreys, and owls. Raptors are equipped with hooked beaks adapted for ripping their food; keen eyesight; and sharp talons. All raptors are carnivorous and their diet includes mammals, fish, birds, reptiles, insects, and amphibians.

VINS is a non-profit, member-supported organization headquartered in Woodstock, Vermont, with regional offices in Montpelier, Manchester, and Quechee. The VINS Nature Center houses one of North America's largest and most impressive collections of non-releasable live raptors. All the birds on display at the VINS Nature Center can not be released back to the wild because of their injuries and disabilities would prevent them from surviving on their own in the wild. They now serve as ambassadors for their species, helping teach thousands of children and adults about the need to protect our natural environment and all the creatures that live in it. For more information about VINS and the VINS Nature Center, contact them at (802) 457-2779 or visit www.vinsweb.org.