A bald eagle found covered in “goo” at a landfill in Brantford has finally been released back into the wild. The bird was released on Sept. 18 from the Hobbitstee Wildlife Refuge in Nanticoke. A supervisor at the landfill discovered the eagle on Aug. 31. “The location was deep within the landfill,” Ian Harrower, a bylaw officer who responded to the call for help, said the day after the rescue. “[It was] was very muddy. You couldn’t really access it by any normal vehicle.” The eagle was covered in a sticky unknown substance. “All the feathers were stuck together,” wildlife custodian Chantal Theijn told CTV News at the time. “Down to the skin, all the feathers were sticky and covered in whatever the mysterious substance is.” While the bird couldn’t fly, it was still very active and running around the landfill. Rescuers cornered the bird, wrapped it in a jacket and took it to experts to make sure the eagle wasn’t seriously hurt. It was then taken to the wildlife rehabilitation centre. The organization said it took four washes to get the “goo” off her feathers.
