The earlier spring, I had been volunteering at the Raptor Trust, a private, nonprofit rehabilitation center for injured and orphaned wild birds located in Millington, NJ. I guess I had been doing such a good job as a volunteer that I was asked to join their summer staff – summer being their busy season due to the influx of nestling birds, they rely on increased staffing during that time.

Although the work was incredibly exhausting (as soon as I got home from work, I would shower off the day’s share of bird excrement, eat my dinner, and then sleep like a rock until the following morning), it was also incredibly rewarding. Every day, I would go home after work knowing that I was doing something that really made a difference – whether it was feeding a baby robin or cleaning-up after an eagle, I was helping these beautiful creatures survive and, hopefully, return to the wild.

The reason why I’m writing about the Raptor Trust now, beside the fact that they deserve recognition for their work, is because I recently had the opportunity to pay them a visit once again, this time with a patient found right here in Ocean Grove.

A juvenile mourning dove was found sitting on the side of the road, unable to fly. With no sign of a nest or parents nearby, and with the omnipresent neighborhood cats waiting to pounce, the little guy was scooped-up and placed in a box with a few breathing holes on top and a soft towel on the bottom.

I couldn’t tell whether he was flightless due to youth or injury. Although there are other well-qualified and capable rehabilitators closer to Ocean Grove, I decided that this might be a good excuse to return to the Raptor Trust and see a few old friends in whose hands my new buddy would have the best chance at survival.

So, I drove up to their facility, about 1.5 hours northwest of Ocean Grove. It turned out that, upon dropping off the dove with them, they provided me with a fully-recovered laughing gull who needed a trip back to the shore to be released. That made my day!

The moment you release a wild bird back into the wild where it belongs is one of the greatest feelings in the world! As a prior employee and volunteer, I had received specialized training on how to handle birds, which is why they allowed me to transport and release the gull. (Volunteers are always in demand, so if you’re interested, please contact them although, an Ocean Grover volunteering in Morris County will have a horrible commute!)

The Raptor Trust’s website (www.theraptortrust.org) has a great deal of information which can be useful to anyone who: wants to help prevent injuries to wild birds; has found an injured or orphaned bird and wants to know what steps to take next; needs to relocate a nest which is in an unsuitable location (this applies to starlings and house sparrows only, since it’s illegal to relocate the nest of any other bird); or wants to know how to cope with woodpeckers pounding on the side of their home.

Originally, I wanted to list all that information here, but their website captures it all already and in a much more comprehensive manner than I could. Please check it out. While you’re there, read the section about the Trust’s history, particularly with regards to Len Soucy.

Len is the heart and soul of the Raptor Trust. He’s one of the few people I’ve encountered in my life who I truly have a tremendous amount of respect for. He began the facility out of his own backyard over 25 years ago with the help of his wife Diane and, with the help of his dedicated and capable staff, they’ve cared for over 60,000 hawks, owls and other wild birds according to their website.

Another interesting thing about the Raptor Trust is that it’s actually a very interesting place to visit and to take your family, especially children. Those birds of prey (i.e. raptors) such as eagles, owls, falcons, and hawks, which cannot be released into the wild due to a major injury such as a loss of a wing, become permanent residents and are often used for education programs and/or to foster orphaned birds. The facility is open to the public all year 9:00 a.m. to dusk and you can spend at least a good hour walking around acquainting yourself with the various species of raptors. Plus, it’s located adjacent to the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge and several other parks, so you can make a day trip out it.

I am very proud to be an “alumni” of the Raptor Trust, one of the most respected wildlife rehabilitation facilities within not just New Jersey, but the entire U.S. I learned a great deal there, not only about bird biology and ecology, but also about dedication. The staff who work there are certainly not in it for the money nor the fame nor the praise (birds don’t always yell “thank you” when they fly away).

Rather, they have found a calling for which they are well-suited – a passion for helping other living things recover from the problems we humans sometimes create. If you were wondering what organization you should donate to this year, please consider the Raptor Trust. They do so much good work with the little they do have, so everything helps. I donate to them regularly because I know first-hand what excellent work they carry out.