CPN Eagle Aviary managers Bree Dunham and Jennifer Randell write about a recent sighting of Wadasé Zhabwé, a bald eagle released from their care nine years ago now thriving in the wild.
The Citizen Potawatomi Nation Eagle Aviary received its U.S. Fish and Wildlife permit and opened its doors one decade ago this June. Aviary managers Jennifer Randell and Bree Dunham sat down with the Hownikan to reflect on the last decade of caring for these sacred animals and what the next 10 years may bring.
Youth programs during summer 2021 provided an opportunity for the Citizen Potawatomi Nation to purchase and place trail cameras across its jurisdiction. The images help connect students to Mother Nature and open dialogue around conservation and land stewardship. The Nation now extends access to trail camera images through potawatomiheritage.com.
In addition to providing a home for some of the Potawatomi peoples’ most sacred animals, the CPN Eagle Aviary staff also protects and nurtures other creatures by responding to animal emergencies across the Nation’s jurisdiction and partnering with the WildCare Foundation in Noble, Oklahoma.
In this episode, we’ll hear about the American Indian Religious Freedom Act of 1978 and its effect on tribes, discuss the connection between cartography and Indigeneity, and learn the history of an artist who documented the Potawatomi Trail of Death in the late 1830s.
During today’s episode, we are hearing from a Tribal member who recently received a seat on a White House environmental council, take a trip through the community garden and revisit the opening of the CPN Eagle Aviary.
During this time, many of the CPN Eagle Aviary residents are building nests, and the pairs there have become more territorial and vocal while defending their space. Everyone’s appetite has increased. Many times, they forecast the weather better than the local meteorologists.
Looking for patterns in frequent visits to areas during the fall and winter, we hope to narrow down locations that she might have chosen to nest. Although, there is one pattern and place unrelated to the focus of nesting that stands out. Wadasé has never failed to come home in the beginning of fall or during the winter months.
Wadasé’s last visit to the aviary was the first week of September. True to her pattern over the last few years, she visits late fall or early winter, briefly, as if to just check in.
Mindful approaches to both the design and implementation of the CPN Eagle Aviary’s enclosures keeps the birds in shape, both mentally and physically.