Injured Bald Eagle Rescued In Smithfield

SMITHFIELD, RI — Wildlife officials with the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) rescued an injured bald eagle in Smithfield earlier this week.

On Sunday afternoon, DEM received a call about a bald eagle with a cut on its eye at Stump Pond. A wildlife expert and an environmental police officer captured the bird and brought it to a licensed raptor rehabilitator for treatment.

"Wild animals have very specific and unique dietary, housing, and handling requirements that include training, education, and experience," a DEM spokesperson said in a statement. "These specially trained individuals, collectively called wildlife rehabilitators, are licensed by the state and provide for the care of injured, sick and orphaned wildlife with the goal of returning them to their native habitats."

Anyone who finds an injured wild animal should call DEM at 401-222-3073.