Raptor rehabilitation in Florida: Admission reasons, care duration, and release rates during the last fifteen years

Abstract

Abstract Wildlife rehabilitators treat thousands of raptors yearly, providing an opportunity to better understand species’ biology, the changing environment, and the dangers raptors encounter in the wild. However, that data is siloed within individual facilities, making it challenging to understand the wider impact of rehabilitation and the dangers raptors face. Data were collected from 50 facilities across the state of Florida, United States of America, from 2009 to early 2023, representing 54,574 patients of 39 species. Patient intake at these facilities doubled between 2010 and 2020 over a relatively stable number of facilities (average = 31.5/year) with an average release rate of 36.6% (range 31.7 – 41.5%). Release rates varied significantly from 21% to 57% between species with over 100 recorded patients. Comparing release rates with the “cause for admission” provided a more nuanced understanding of what was affecting raptor patients and their release rates. Trauma was the most common cause of admission (40.2%) and has been relatively consistent year over year. For those patients with more specific identification attributes, 65% were male, 50% were adults, and patients spent an average of 16.6 days in care. The data provided in this study has the potential to make fundamental changes to raptor rehabilitation policies and encourage more collaboration between rehabilitators and researchers for the betterment of the patients in care.