GREEN, Ohio — Tressa Speight noticed a lot of Facebook chatter Wednesday evening about a bald eagle near Portage Lakes State Park that seemed to have a broken wing and could not fly.
The location in a wooded area off Moore Road was not far from her home, and she felt compelled to take action.
"It's our patriotic duty. It's our national bird, and I wasn't gonna let a federally-protected bird lay to die in the woods," Speight said.
Speight, who has a background in fostering and rescuing animals, responded to the scene with her husband and their son. They took extra precautions as they picked up the bird.
"We just grabbed some, like, heavy-duty gloves, a towel, a blanket and a dog cage," Speight said. "I just had them throw the blanket and towel over her and then just scoop her up, and we brought her back through the woods, back to the car and put her in the cage."
The family took the eagle back to their home. Speight said she made nearly 20 calls looking for someone to help care for the bird. A wildlife officer with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources picked up the eagle Wednesday night.
On Thursday, Speight learned that the majestic bird had died. The cause of death is being investigated as a suspected case of bird flu.
"It was sick, so there was nothing we could do and I'm devastated," Speight said.
ODNR released a statement indicating the eagle was recovered but did not give a specific timeframe for test results.
"The division is monitoring all reports of dead wild birds in the state and has sent several samples collected in Ohio to confirm Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza."
ODNR has received one confirmation from the National Veterinary Services Laboratory for positive HPAI in a Canada goose from Mercer County and is awaiting more test results.
Wildlife officials said most of the suspected bird flu cases in Summit County have been found in ducks or geese.
The outbreak has affected millions of birds. In Ohio, dozens of commercial or backyard flocks have contracted the virus.
According to the USDA, Ohio leads the nation in poultry flocks impacted by the bird flu.
Dr. Tara Smith, an epidemiology professor at Kent State University, said the possibility of eagles becoming infected shows how quickly the disease can spread.
"There were just two baby eagles in Florida that passed away from bird flu in just the last week or so," Smith said.
Smith believes the outbreak will only get worse before it gets better.
"It's really difficult to stop, so I don't see this really getting under control anytime soon," she said.
Smith said the virus has also spread to dairy cattle. She added that poultry bird flu cases may be skyrocketing, partly because Ohio has many domestic chickens and turkeys.
"When it gets in a flock, they have to culled, have to be killed to stop the infection from spreading," Smith said. "That's a problem right now. That's one of the big reasons why egg prices are so high."
Only about 70 bird flu cases in humans have been reported in the U.S., but health experts continue to urge precautions around wild birds.
"If you see— especially wild birds that are ill, that may be dead—don't touch them. Contact wildlife professionals so that we don't get any more human cases," Smith said.
Speight said she wished the eagle she tried to save had a different outcome. She also hopes bird flu cases will slow down.
"It's an unfortunate thing that's happening right now to our animals."
