2 Bald Eagles Find a Roost in Display at Santa Ana Zoo

As unlikely as it might seem, two bald eagles have found a home in the heart of Orange County.

The two eagles, one male, one female, live in a new 500-square-foot exhibit at the Santa Ana Zoo. But there is no need for a cage or netting to keep them from soaring off. Both have mangled wings and are incapable of flying.

The bald eagle display, which opened last month, is quickly becoming one of the zoo’s most popular exhibits, said Jennifer Rigby, curator of education at the zoo.

“You just don’t see bald eagles in Orange County,” Rigby said. “I think people are drawn to this exhibit because bald eagles are such large, majestic birds. They’re our national symbol and an endangered species.”

Rigby said the aesthetics of the exhibit also attract attention. The birds’ home is a forest landscape, complete with a rocky stream bed.

The birds, which each weigh approximately 10 pounds and have seven-foot wingspans, were brought to the zoo in 1988 after spending several years at the University of Minnesota. Both were found injured and had only one wing each. The female bird, hatched in 1982, is missing its right wing, while the male bird, hatched in 1983, is missing its left.

“We don’t know exactly what happened to their wings,” said Rigby. “We can speculate that the injuries came from a gunshot or a power line.”

It took more than a year before officials felt confident enough to display the birds, which had to be prepared for life in the zoo.

“Eagles are nervous, flighty birds,” Rigby said. “These birds are no longer nervous. We had to systematically desensitize them to being on view. For one month, they were brought out for exhibit for short periods of time, and the amount of time was increased gradually.”

Usually, bald eagles make meals of dead or dying fish. At the zoo, this pair has become accustomed to dining on a commercially prepared meat product and are treated to fresh rabbit once a week.

Rigby said the zoo plans to use the birds’ injuries as a focal point in discussing the plight of birds of prey.

“We want to publicize the fact that illegal hunting, pesticides and loss of habitat have significantly reduced bald eagle population worldwide, except for the coasts of Alaska and British Columbia,” Rigby said.

In the lower 48 states, Rigby said, there are believed to be 8,534 bald eagles. In California, there are about 1,170 bald eagles, some of which can be spotted at Big Bear Lake, Lake Mathews, Lake Cachuma and Catalina Island.

Several zoos across the nation are involved in captive breeding and rehabilitation programs for bald eagles.

“The eventual hope is to re-establish wild population of the bald eagle,” Rigby said. “We hope to one day release surplus birds back into a natural habitat. It’s a realistic goal and has already been done with the peregrine falcon.”

Those visiting the zoo Monday seemed impressed by the eagle exhibit.

“I’m so surprised to see them here,” said Lisa Worsley of Carson. “We were just walking around, looking at all the other birds when we saw these. It’s unbelievable.”

Equally impressed was Worsley’s 4-year-old son, Sean, who couldn’t take his eyes off the birds as they perched on a log.

“Mommy, he’s not bald, he has hair,” said the preschooler.

David Laboy, a 10-year-old from Paramount, also stared at the birds in wonder.

“This is my first time seeing a bald eagle,” he said. “It’s the biggest bird I’ve ever seen.”

Ed Cronin, 17, of Santa Ana, said that he was saddened by the eagles’ predicament.

“I personally don’t like birds in zoos,” he said. “Look at that bird--that’s the symbol of our country in there. I just think it’s kind of sad.”

Nevertheless, Cronin focused the zoom lens of his camera on the birds and took numerous photographs.

“I don’t know when I’ll get another chance to take a picture of an actual bald eagle,” Cronin said.

Rigby said the roughly 225,000 people who visit the zoo each year will have plenty of time to see the bald eagles since the exhibit is slated to run indefinitely.

The Santa Ana Zoo is open daily, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is located at 1801 E. Chestnut Ave., one block south of 1st Street and the Santa Ana Freeway.