Bald eagle rescued from roadway in Coram, Long Island
CORAM, N.Y. - A 9-pound bald eagle is now recovering at a nature center in Smithtown after being rescued from Route 112 in Coram on Thursday.
A motorist spotted the bald eagle get hit by a truck's side mirror and then sit helplessly in the meridian of Route 112. The Strong Island Animal Rescue League was able to carry the eagle to safety, but it is unable to fly due to a damaged pupil.
"A bird really needs his vision in order to hunt to bring home food for the family so he needs to go to a veterinary specialist -- an eye person," Director of Wildlife Rehab at Sweetbriar Nature Center Janine Bendicksen said.
"Of course it's heartbreaking, I want to see him soaring the skies and living a life of an eagle so that's why I brought him to Sweetbriar, that's what's going to get the job done," Strong Island Animal Rescue League employee Frankie Floridia said.
There are only eight nesting pairs of bald eagles on Long Island. This bald eagle happens to be 5 years old; he possesses white head feathers to prove his age.
Wildlife rescuers called him "Liberty."