Veterinarians at a Grafton Wildlife Clinic euthanized an injured red-tailed hawk found on the porch of a Martin Bates Street residence Monday afternoon.
"It was clear that the right wing was hanging down low, indicating it had sustained trauma," said Curtis Hanson, rescue agent for the Animal Rescue League of Boston. Dedham Police called the rescue league after receiving reports of a hawk walking in the roadway.
Using a large wildlife net, Hanson moved the roughly 2 1/2-foot-long hawk into a dog carrier with the help of a Dedham officer. "They are usually very submissive when they know they are hurt. There was no retaliation," said Hanson.
Hanson drove the bird to the wildlife clinic at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. The hawk was found to have a fractured humerus - the bone that runs between the shoulder and elbow - and the wound around the fracture had become infected.
"The fracture was open through the skin. There was also fly larvae in it," said Robin Shearer, program assistant at the Wildlife Clinic. "It almost seemed like it tried to heal but because it wasn't lined up it couldn't heal right."
The injury could have been up to a week old, said Shearer. "Sadly, it may have been there for a while. The poor bird was extremely thin."
An undetermined Massachusetts wildlife agency tagged the hawk on Nov. 5, 1995, meaning the bird was at least 12 years old, which "is a very good lifespan," said Shearer.
Shearer said she was planning to report the band number to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
