Pair of injured raptors found after storm

    A juvenile white-tailed kite is on the road to recovery after sustaining injuries in the Sept. 11 hailstorm that pummeled Imperial, its rural areas and parts of other counties.
    The young kite, which resembles a hawk, was found by Bruce Curtis as he walked to work at the Upper Republican NRD office last Thursday morning, the day after the storm.
    Curtis spotted the small raptor at the edge of some pine trees at 10th and Douglas Streets.
    “The white in his feathers is what stood out” and caught his eye, Curtis said.
    Not knowing exactly what to do, when Curtis arrived at his office, he started making calls, eventually reaching Kim Riley of Ogallala, a volunteer with the Raptor Recovery Center in Elmwood.
    A couple hours later, Curtis returned to the site, placed a towel over the kite in order to pick it up, then placed it in a box as directed.
    Later that same day, other staff who work for the NRD were in Dundy County near Rock Creek and spotted a great horned owl along the road with a severely broken wing.
    Having heard of Curtis’ experience earlier that day, Dwain Curtis (no relation) and Todd Burrell retrieved the owl and brought it to Imperial, where it was placed in a box and covered to keep out the light, like the other raptor Curtis had found.
    Curtis took both birds home, where he made arrangements with Riley to pick them up. Curtis and his wife, Sheryl, met Riley in Grant that evening for the transfer.
    Riley believes both raptors were injured in last Wednesday’s storm, which dropped golf ball sized hail in Imperial, and left damage throughout the county.

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