New Flights for Old Feathers
When a red-tailed hawk with six broken feathers was brought to the California Raptor Center, veterinarians knew they would need some old feathers and an old technique to heal the raptor. This method worked so well the hawk was able to be released back into the wild later that day. Using old feathers that had been carefully stored and preserved, the center was able to imp the bird. Imping involves cutting away most of the broken feather on the bird, inserting a small wood rod in the hollow shaft of the feather, then attaching the preserved feather.