Raptor Stuck in Batting Cage Set Free

A juvenile Cooper's Hawk mistook a batting cage for a bird cage Sunday, bird enthusiasts told IB Patch.

The bird was discovered Sunday afternoon and reported to Tijuana Estuary Visitor Center staff. U.S. Fish and Wildlife responded and The Raptor Institute assisted in catching the bird.

Baseball and softball players spotted the bird around noon, said Imperial Beach Little League president Don Spicer, after someone left the batting cage gate open.

Athletes did not hit balls with the hawk in the cage, Spicer said.

"We've had one in there once before," he said. "We got him out ourselves by shaking the net but you don't want them to get frightened or attack you."

The bird had a cut on its beak possibly from trying to escape the net surrounding the cage but after a quick examination was set free, said Charles Gailband with The Raptor Foundation.

Spring and summer are a busy time of year for groups like Sky Hunters in Alpine who rescue and rehabilitate birds, Gailband said.

Young raptors may fall from their nests and be abandoned by their mother while adults can get hit by cars, run into windows or chain-link fences or get electrocuted.

The hawk found in the batting cage Sunday may have been chasing food, he said.

"It's not uncommon for birds like that to fly into buildings like warehouses or Home Depot. They fly in chasing a birds and then they get trapped in there and they don't know how to get out cause they can't see the exit from up high," Gailband said.

The Raptor Foundation's aim is to educate the public on the importance of birds of prey to ecosystems.

"Just like sharks in the ocean or lions in Africa they're an important species because of the checks and balances they keep on everything else," Raptor Foundation board member Danny Sedivec said.