OP
Bald Eagle

OP is a Bald Eagle who was brought to Sardis in 1995 as part of a mass secondary poisoning event. Secondary poisoning is when one animal is poisoned, not through ingesting poison directly, but from eating something else that has poison in its system. This can happen when predators eat smaller animals that have already ingested poison. In OP’s case, the poison in question was Warbex, an organophosphate insecticide that was usually used to treat cattle for parasites.

​

However, in this instance, the Warbex had been in starlings that OP ate. As near as Sardis was able to determine, one or more farmers in the area were putting out Warbex, either on poisoned corn or in retention ponds, to try and get rid of starlings that were going after their crops. When the starlings ingested the poison, OP was part of a group of 35 eagles that were brought to Sardis during this mass poisoning event.​ Other animals affected included ducks, opossums, and raccoons.

​

OP was in bad shape when he got to Sardis. Warbex affects the central nervous system. One of the first symptoms is “drunk wings” as the birds lose some motor control. Poor OP crashed into the side of a barn and sustained wing damage. He also

had his feet clenched so tightly shut when he came in that they couldn’t be opened, and he wasn’t able to move on his own.

​

Treatment involved surgery to remove any remaining poisoned food from his crop and stomach. When OP was being brought out from under anesthesia, he actually stopped breathing as the anesthetic was weaned. It was reintroduced and his breathing stabilized. 

​

Of the 35 eagles who were found alive and brought to Sardis during this mass poisoning, one unfortunately died, but all the others survived, and OP was the only one to sustain permanent damage preventing release. His name, OP, comes from the

abbreviation for the type of poison he was affected with,

organophosphate. OP is a fairly small bald eagle, so we suspect he is a male.

​

He currently lives in the Yekwela enclosure with six other bald

eagles. OP is a fairly easygoing bird. He interacts well with the

volunteers who come to clean his enclosure and can often be seen

curiously observing us as we work. Due to his smaller size and

a slight wing droop on the side where he hit the barn, he is

generally easy to pick out of the group.