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Red-Tailed Hawk

I'd like to say that I took this photo while deep in the Alaskan bush, but the truth is I was at the Vancouver aquarium. While on my way out, I passed the handler in charge of Rudy, the red-tailed hawk in the photo. Rudy was shot in the leg as a young bird, but survived even though the bullet remains in her abdomen. Because Rudy's rescuers tamed her, she can't survive now without humans to provide food. She's now 18 years old. In the wild, red-tailed hawks have a life expectancy of between 9-11 years.

©2007 by Jennifer Hawks