Should The Bald Eagle Be Dianne, Davis Or Quabbin At EcoTarium?

WORCESTER, MA—The new bald eagle Bob at the EcoTarium just got a friend moving into the museum with him. Another bald eagle, a one-year-old female, comes from a Florida rehabilitation facility: the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey. That's where Bob came from, too, and they lived together for a short time in Florida.

But there, this girl bird was called simply Bald Eagle 570-17, and ended up at the EcoTarium because she has a permanent wing injury that prevents her from flying well enough to live in the wild.

She's more than a number. She needs a name, and the EcoTarium is asking the public to pick one out for her.

The name choices are: Dianne, Davis and Quabbin. All three names honor Dianne Davis, who recently retired as a keeper at the EcoTarium. For a donation of $5 or more, votes can be cast onsite at the Tickets & Information Desk, or online.

Davis was instrumental in the state program that re-introduced bald eagles to Massachusetts. She spent the summer of 1985 living alone on the shores of the Quabbin Reservoir caring for eight eaglets, feeding them fish that she pulled from the water. Davis published “Eagle One, A Personal Journey” about her experience and career devoted to wildlife and education.

It will be easy for a few years to tell the eagles apart, because like all young bald eagles, this new girl has a brown head. But by five years old, she'll have a fully-white head.

Bob and the soon to be named female are typical of the animals living on EcoTarium grounds that no longer live in the wild due to injuries, illness and human socialization. All animals are housed in enclosures that have been specially designed to meet the natural needs of the species as well as to accommodate any physical limitations of the individual animal, said the announcement. All animal residents receive regular check-ups from their vets and daily interaction with their caretakers.

Photo via EcoTarium