A small group gathered Tuesday at the Cottonwood Creek Greenbelt in Frisco to watch the release of a rehabilitated red-shouldered falcon.
“Today we have a spirited bird here,” said Erich Neupert. Neupert is Executive Director of the Blackland Prairie Raptor Center in Lucas. “We don’t have a close relationship with them because they’re wild animals that are going back to nature.”
The falcon fell out of its nest as a baby. It was rehabilitated for 2 1/2 months; Learning to hunt for food, fly, and get a medical exam to make sure it’s ready to spread its wings.
“The cool thing is it passed mouse school, that’s great! That means it knows how to hunt for itself, ”Neupert explained to the assembled crowd. “Think about it, these guys eat a lot of mice. If we didn’t have any birds of prey around here, we would have mice up to our knees! “
The falcon’s release was intended to draw attention to the city of Frisco’s 10 designated natural areas within the city’s park system.
“We recognize that now is the time to conserve natural resources as a growing area,” said Kelsey Johnson. Johnson is the education and outreach coordinator for Frisco.
“So we have to give this bird some time to go ‘Where am I, what just happened?'” Neupert told the crowd before opening the bird’s transport box.
As soon as the door opened, the bird flew into its new home.
“Straight into the forest, that’s where they should be,” said Neupert excitedly. “Everybody gossip! Woohoo!”
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