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.
In this very special episode, we’re celebrating the 10-year anniversary of the opening of Citizen Potawatomi Nation’s Eagle Aviary this June, which allowed visitors in for the first time Family Reunion Festival weekend in 2012.
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.
Mindful approaches to both the design and implementation of the CPN Eagle Aviary’s enclosures keeps the birds in shape, both mentally and physically.
The CPN Eagle Aviary is proud to also care for three non-eagles including an augur buzzard named Nikan, a peregrine falcon named Lady Z and Jigwé, a Harris’s hawk.
Summer is the Citizen Potawatomi Nation Eagle Aviary’s busiest season. It includes the Family Reunion Festival, the Potawatomi Leadership Program, summer camp tours as well as eagle feather molting. The heat and severe weather also require staff to take extra precautions.
This episode focuses on art created by Tribal members, highlighting both a stop-motion animator and a painter who mixes foundations of Native American art with eclecticism. A staff member of the CPN Eagle Aviary teaches the similarities and differences between bald and golden eagles, which the aviary houses.