Our visitors have been asking what has happened to one of our most popular birds. Lincoln our Bald Eagle has spent the best part of the last twelve months on “holiday” with his best friend Rufus. Rufus was our Senior Falconer for a number of years and built up a strong relationship of trust with Lincoln. When Rufus left us in 2022 to pursue another career, Lincoln became depressed. This made him difficult and dangerous for staff to work with.
Early in 2023, an agreement was made that Rufus would take Lincoln for a period on temporary loan to get him back into condition for flying. Lincoln settled into life with Rufus very well, and was soon displaying behaviours that are known to show how relaxed and calm the bird is, that he had very rarely shown whilst at Suffolk Owl Sanctuary,
Staff had long suspected that Lincoln found living in a busy Centre quite stressful, and this holiday seemed to prove this. Over the summer, Lincoln moulted most of his feathers (a natural process, and only done when they feel safe), and since then Rufus has been working with him to slowly gain his confidence when flying.
Several members of our team have been out on separate occasions to see Lincoln and Rufus, and all have reported how much happier Lincoln is. As such, and with the agreement of our Manager and Trustees, we have made the decision to allow Rufus to keep Lincoln on a permanent basis.
This decision was not taken lightly, as we know how popular Lincoln was to all of our visitors, particularly those with a connection to the US. However, as a conservation charity, we must put the long-term welfare and wellbeing of our birds and animals first.
We hope that our supporters and visitors will understand our reasons for this.
If there is any doubt remaining, please read this from Rufus:
Lincoln looking majestic as ever
“Lincoln is very special to me, I'm completely obsessed with him! When I decided to move on from the owl sanctuary after five years of working very closely with him it left a very large eagle sized hole and I missed him terribly. Birds pick people, unlike dogs who generally will like anyone who's kind to them, the more intelligent bird species find something in an individual and develop a preference. Particularly eagles especially if they are imprinted (human raised) like Lincoln. I'm in no way suggesting there are any emotions there for Lincoln but more a bond of respect and trust we built up over a number of years as I worked obsessively to improve his daily life, particularly the way in which he was flown. From an arena bird where he would fly low across the ground (or stomping around!) to learning how to soar and fly like his wild cousins. This new routine vastly improved his outlook and quality of life and some of his less appealing traits softened over time as he was truly able to express himself in a positive way.
When I received a call suggesting to have Lincoln at home on trial to help to improve his welfare as he appeared to be regressing, there was no question I wanted to help. I've worked with a vast array of spectacular bird species in my career but none of them come close to my relationship with Lincoln. There's something about him that "speaks" to me and I only ever want the best for him. We all had concerns about the impact that such a big change could have on him as he often doesn't react well to change! To help smooth the transition work began to ramp up his box training. Lincoln was occasionally boxed but he certainly wasn't used to travelling in vehicles so lots of time and effort was put into preparing him for this.
Once he was home and began to settle in, we were all taken aback at how well he was taking to his new life in the country! He seemed so much more relaxed, he would spend significant time sunbathing (something we rarely saw before). Previously Lincoln would often be on edge and reactive, it was well known he was highly strung and dominant and needed very careful handling but at home he was calm and quiet and interestingly needing a lot less food to maintain his condition which reinforces that he was less stressed and happier.
Work continued with his box training and we began the short journey to his new flying ground which incredibly he took in his stride. His new flying ground is many acres of open, beautiful Suffolk countryside with arable fields managed for conservation with some mixed woodland and views over a valley. Soon enough he began to fly free and found his favourite standing dead tree that he spends time resting in and surveying. He's very relaxed up there which is great to see. However, a couple of weeks into flying he launched into what I now refer to as a 'mega moult'! Seemingly over-night he dropped so many primary feathers he made himself virtually flightless! He had a gap of three missing feathers on one wing leaving me no choice but to give him some time off in his new aviary for a moult. The next four months saw him virtually explode! Replacing his entire tail, most of his primary feathers and endless body feathers too. This mega moult again appeared to reinforce how he feels about his new home.
Lincoln could barely fly during his “mega moult”
Lincoln is now free flying again, several days a week and he's doing incredibly well. He's taking on large exploratory flights over several fields, something he wouldn't do previously, and he's now starting to show promise in making the effort to gain height now that he's becoming fitter. Everything is looking good for some proper thermalling flights when the spring/summer warmth returns which is very exciting! When he's not flying, he's free lofted in his aviary and if he's having an off day and doesn't want to come out, he doesn't.
Lincoln's future is bright! He's a different bird with an exciting outlook. The plan is to continue to encourage proper soaring/thermalling flights over the Suffolk countryside and further unlock his potential. I turn 40 this year and receiving the offer to make the situation with Lincoln permanent was the best gift I could ever receive! As much as I dared to dream privately I didn't think it would ever become a permanent thing and as surreal as it is to have a bald eagle in the garden it most definitely feels right, for us both. It's not a decision either party took lightly but one that was so clearly in Lincoln’s best interests. We're both on our way to middle age now and all I want is to enjoy being with my most favourite bird. The commitment to Lincoln is huge but he encourages me to strike a better work/life balance and as my work is very flexible, I can make the time to fly him on days when the conditions are right. I feel very lucky. Onwards and upwards from here!”