Stories

Carolina Raptor Center

Charlotte is lucky to be home to the Carolina Raptor Center, a busy nonprofit located in Huntersville.  The Raptor Center is home and hospital to over 97 birds of prey.  This year, with the outbreak of Avian Bird Flu, the Raptor Center had to close its door to incoming birds.  Learn more about this incredible nonprofit and how they rose to the challenge to help birds of prey today and for the future.

What would you like the community to know about the challenges your organization is trying to solve?

Rehabilitation of birds of prey has been our mission for almost 50 years. And this winter, when Avian Influenza (HPAI) struck in the US, we had to close our doors to new patients to keep our resident birds safe. The outlook for HPAI is that it will likely be around for the foreseeable future.

The Resident Bird team has been working hard to upfit the hospital to be able to accept new patients. These biosecurity measures will include redesigning our hospital to separate staff and resident birds, use of full PPE, disinfection procedures, and quarantine of the new patients.

We are asking for your donations to purchase supplies so that we can get back to our rehabilitation mission and reopen the hospital in mid-June.

What is your organization’s role in the community?

Carolina Raptor Center ignites imaginations and inspires engagement in the natural world through the exploration and rehabilitation of birds of prey. Carolina Raptor Center is home to 97 permanent resident birds - eagles, hawks, owls, falcons, vultures, and corvids - our focus is on educating the public about the environment, human impact, and many STEM topics.    

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Carolina Raptor Center is fortunate to have the most amazing volunteers!  Carolina Raptor Center ignites imaginations and inspires engagement in the natural world through the exploration and rehabilitation of birds of prey. Carolina Raptor Center is home to 97 permanent resident birds - eagles, hawks, owls, falcons, vultures, and corvids - our focus is on educating the public about the environment, human impact, and many STEM topics.  Volunteers on our Raptor Rescue Team (this includes people who will come to your home or site of an injured bird and safely deliver that raptor to the Carolina Raptor Center Hospital facility) are among our most engaged volunteers.  One Raptor Rescue Volunteer (who wishes to remain anonymous) was so down about the rehab/hospital not being able to open due to HPAI, but he didn't want to loose hope during he shut down, so on his own giving/supply collection campaign!   By asking his personal friends and family, this volunteer started collecting cleaning supplies and other items he knew we'd need at reopening.  On his own, he raised over $1,000 in materials and financial support to help with reopening!  We just have a few more items/dollars to raise and this committed volunteer will be back out in the community rescuing raptors which is his greatest joy!

About the image pictured above: This image is a beautiful example of how it takes many hands and hearts to fulfill our mission.  Here our staff and volunteers are working hard rehab this amazing bird of prey who is vulnerable, scared and in need of healing.  Raptor Center supports make this possible.

Contact: Shannon Crawford Walker

Email: swalker@carolinaraptorcenter.org