Saving an American icon

By Cleve Wiese

Published: May 24, 2008

Thousands of admirers around the world are anxiously awaiting the results of one media darling patient’s specially-scheduled MRI scan, administered Saturday afternoon at Augusta Medical Center.
The fact that the fuzz-covered, soccer-ball-sized celebrity is a 28-day-old bald eagle only endears him further to legions of fans in 49 states and at least 18 countries, said Amy Dagnall, a spokeswoman for the Norfolk Botanical Gardens.
The eaglet achieved fame via an infrared camera mounted in a tree near its parents’ nest at the garden, Dagnall said. The “Eagle Cam,” which broadcasts streaming video onto the Internet 24 hours a day, was installed five years ago when a pair of adult bald eagles began nesting there during the mating season — usually between January and June, Dagnall said.
The popular Web site received particular attention this year as a series of dramatic mishaps destroyed the first four eggs of the season, she said. When a final, fifth egg was laid March 22, then hatched about a week later, the number of viewers skyrocketed: At least 62,262 more people tuned in this March than a year before, she said.
But the drama took an unexpectedly tragic turn May 16 when a photographer – part of an attentive press corps dubbed the “eagle-razzi” by park employees – noticed a lump on the left side of the birds beak while taking pictures through a high-powered lens, Dagnall said. The bird was removed from its nest and examined by the state wildlife veterinarian Thursday, then immediately transported to the Wildlife Center of Virginia in Waynesboro, the only facility in the commonwealth licensed to provide extended medical care to bald eagles, according to a press release.
Saturday’s scan was the third time in the last nine years Augusta Medical Center has donated the use of its MRI facilities for a wildlife center patient, said Al Jones, MRI supervisor for the hospital. After minor difficulties adapting the bird to the people-sized machine – a knee brace was used to stabilize its head – the bird, sleeping soundly after a dose of anesthesia, slid into the cavernous machine while three veterinarians anxiously looked on.
A complete diagnosis of the cause and nature of the walnut-sized lump won’t be available until early next week, but the initial results of the MRI were mixed, said Dr. Dave McRuer, director of veterinary services at the Wildlife Center of Virginia.
“The growth is invasive, but it’s not as bad as it could be,” he said.
Results from a biopsy sent Thursday to a specialized, regional laboratory in Georgia will help determine whether the growth is a viral or bacterial infection or a tumor, McRuer said. 
“It could be a number of different things, including the virus Avian Pox,” McRuer said. “But I’ve never seen [Avian Pox] look like this: This is much bigger and more aggressive ... This is very rare. I’ve never seen a tumor like this in a bird of any species.”
While the prognosis for the little eaglet remains dangerously up in the air, a number of factors are working in its favor, said Edward Clark, president and co-founder of the Virginia Wildlife Center. To begin with, he said, it will receive the finest, most advanced medical treatment available.
“We’re getting financial support and inquiries about this bird from as far away as British Columbia,” Clark said. “We would give this kind of care to any patient, but the fact that this bird is a celebrity provides some incentive to really go the extra mile.”
It also provides a priceless opportunity to promote the wildlife center’s underlying agenda, he said.
“We take care of individual animals, and that’s an important part of what we do,” Clark said. “But clinical care is also a
vehicle: Each case gives us a window to see larger environmental problems affecting wildlife.”
The eaglet’s condition is a prime example of this principle he said: Whatever caused the extraordinarily rare growth –
possibilities include pesticides, pollution, toxins in the food supply – could easily impact other animals in the Norfolk area,
including humans, he said. The fact that people around the world feel an emotional link to this particular bird will certainly help raise awareness of larger issues as well, he said.
“That’s what sets the Wildlife Center apart from most other centers that care for wildlife: Just fixing the eagle isn’t enough – we’ve got to figure out what made it sick.”