YAKIMA, Wash.-The latest addition to the Yakama Nation Aviary will carry on tribal traditions for years to come.
The aviary recently welcomed its third bird, a juvenile golden eagle, after it had been rehabilitated by Washington State University veterinarians.
The Yakama Nation Aviary is a tribal facility that houses birds that are unable to be released into the wild for educational and ceremonial purposes.
“The eagle is very sacred to us and has great significance in our lives,” said Jerry Meninick, a Yakama elder, previous Yakama Nation Tribal Council member, and current deputy director of culture.
The new golden eagle is unable to hunt on its own and was treated at WSU in October after an injury, possibly the result of being hit by a car. The eagle, which had a broken left wing and damaged left eye has now fully recovered, but would be unable to survive in the wild, according to WSU.
The eagle’s feathers represent courage, strength and wisdom in many Native American cultures and can be collected and distributed to tribal members at graduations, weddings, funerals and cultural celebrations.
Feathers from eagles at the Yakama Nation Aviary are collected through natural shedding or molting.
“By housing and caring for these birds at our aviary, we can meet the needs of our 14 bands and tribes that make up the ‘Confederated Tribes [and Bands] of the Yakama Nation,’ and not need to go through the national repository,” said Michael Beckler, wildlife biologist for the Yakama Nation.
According to WSU’s press release on the golden eagle, the Yakama Nation hopes to ultimately expand the aviary to house up to 40 birds, a number which could produce about 300,000 eagle feathers annually.
“To us, the eagle is a messenger, meaning it not only has a responsibility here on Earth, but it has connection and communicates to the spiritual side of our lives,” said Meninick.
