Every year dozens of baby birds are left on Carolina Raptor Center's doorsteps. Maybe a building was being torn down and a nest with barn owl eggs was saved, or it's possible that a baby barred owl was pushed out of the nest by its siblings, or an infant American kestrel was stretching its wings but couldn't fly yet. These babies need a good home where they will be fed, cared for by a foster parent and taught how to catch their own food. With your support they will get the proper care and schooling so that they will be successful adults upon their release.

Your adoption of an orphan is critical to providing the best care for many babies that need rehabilitation services. These infants are so cute that you will want to Adopt-An-Orphan for all your friends. Help support their basic needs so they will grow to adulthood.

Adoption Options

Down to Feathers - $50.00

Your contribution underwrites an admission exam of the new patient, food and supplements while housed indoors, frequent check-ups to monitor weight gain and feather development, and a match with a foster parent of the same species.

Benefits include:

»A beautiful 5” x 7” photograph of your orphan species
»A certificate of adoption suitable for framing
»Developmental fact sheet of your orphan species
»One free admission to Carolina Raptor Center*
»Subscription to Flight - Carolina Raptor Center�s newsletter

*Orphans are kept separated from the public and cannot be viewed

Feathers to Flight - $150.00

Your contribution underwrites an admission exam of the new patient, food and supplements while housed indoors, frequent check-ups to monitor weight gain and feather development, and a match with a foster parent of the same species. Your orphan is also sent to mouse and flight school before being released back into the wild.

Benefits include:

»A beautiful 5” x 7” photograph of your orphan species
»A certificate of adoption suitable for framing
»Developmental fact sheet of your orphan species
»One free admission to Carolina Raptor Center*
»One free admission to a Behind the Scenes Tour**
»One free ticket invitation (plus one guest) to a raptor release***
»Subscription to Flight - Carolina Raptor Center’s newsletter

*Orphans are kept separated from the public and cannot be viewed
**Releases do not happen on a regular basis, schedule of releases will be emailed, specific species may not be available for release
***E-mail address required for invitation

Carolina Raptor Center releases over 300 rehabilitated raptors each year. Please contact us if you are interested in hosting a raptor release party. It's a great way to spread the word about Carolina Raptor Center.

Frequently Asked Questions About Orphaned Birds

What happens to an orphaned bird when it arrives at Carolina Raptor Center?

Upon admission the baby raptor will receive a full exam. It will be placed on a balance diet that may include mice, chicks, mealworms and other appropriate food for that species. It may also receive vitamins, medications and supplements while housed indoors. Volunteers and staff members conduct frequent check-ups to monitor weight gain, feather development and behavioral changes.

What is the foster parent program?

It is important that a raptor be raised by a parent of its own species or at least has contact and interaction with an adult bird. The amount of contact required varies with the age of the baby when it is admitted to Carolina Raptor Center. The young baby (1-4 weeks old) will learn to identify with this adult and mirror its behaviors. This process is called imprinting. A raptor baby that is raised by people will not realize that it's a bird. It will not know how to hunt and may attempt to attract you as its mate. An older baby is already correctly imprinted on its own species and needs to observe normal behaviors.

At all stages of its young life, a nestmate is very important for proper development. It gives the baby the opportunity to mimic an older sibling, to preen each other and develop social skills, to huddle together for warmth and comfort while the adult bird is not present in the nest - Carolina Raptor Center tries to duplicate in captivity the natural process of growing up, as much as possible.


These adults are caring for three baby barn owls. They are excellent foster parents and will bring food to the babies until they are old enough to get it for themselves.

What is mouse school?

Juvenile raptors must learn to catch their own food if they hope to survive after being released. Catching live, running mice is very different than being fed dead mice. Although hunting is an instinct it takes practice for a fledgling to be able to catch enough food to survive on its own. (While their instincts may tell them to chase a moving prey item, they need lots of practice before they get proficient.) In mouse school, juveniles watch adults or older siblings/nestmates, and are able to get the practice needed so they can learn to catch their own dinner. Attending mouse school will greatly enhance the survival rate for orphaned raptors.

What is flight school?

Once the juvenile raptor is old enough to fly, it is moved into a large flight cage so it can begin to strengthen its flight muscles. Nature's rules dictate that only the strongest survive. Upon release, the raptor may have to fly some distance before it finds a suitable territory and food. Approximately twelve special flight cages are available at Carolina Raptor Center for all sizes of raptors. Two 100' long flight cages can be linked to create one of the largest rehabilitation flight cages in the southeastern United States.

Fun Facts - on Babies

What are the main causes for babies being orphaned?

Storms knocking babies out of nests, trees being cut down, sibling rivalry, injured parents that can't care for their babies and buildings being demolished or cleaned are some of the most common reasons.

What does it cost to rehabilitate an injured raptor?

The average cost is $500. (Probably less for babies, since they usually don't require medication, surgery, bandages, etc).

When do they open their eyes?

About two to five days of age.

How much do they eat in one day?

Two to four times the amount of an adult. (Ex. 40-50g for an Eastern Screech Owl baby, 150-200g for a Red-tailed hawk baby)

When do they begin growing their body and flight feathers?

Around two to three weeks of age.

How fast do they grow up?

Many young raptors can fly in six to eight weeks, ten weeks for vultures.

When do they begin hunting on their own?

When they can fly. Parents feed for first week or so then wean them off about one to two months after fledging.

What is the average stay of a baby raptor?

Three months.

Baby birds grow up so fast. Are they always gaining weight?

Infants put on lots of weight in the first several weeks. As they grow into juveniles and start flying they use more energy and burn more calories. Young birds often lose weight during their first few weeks in flight cages as they lose fat and build muscles.

Am I the only parent?

Actually no. Because so much care and supplies go into the rehabilitation of each orphan received by Carolina Raptor Center, your adoption fee does not cover all of the infant's expenses. When you attend a release of "your" adopted orphan, you'll have the opportunity to meet some other "parents" with a similar commitment to wildlife and the environment.