Injured, Rehabbed Woodpecker Finds Home at Minnesota Zoo

Editor's note: The following is a press release from the .

A very lucky pileated woodpecker has found a new home at the Minnesota Zoo after being cared for at the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Minnesota in Roseville.

The young male woodpecker was brought from Hamel, Minnesota to the WRC on June 16, 2011.

Injured in the wild after falling from a nest, the bird was unable to lift his neck and suffered from other neurological ailments due to his injury. After an examination by WRC veterinarians, he was placed in their avian nursery where he was cared for throughout the summer by dedicated staff and volunteers. He was very thin and in bad condition, suffering from opisthotonus, a type of spasm in which the head arches backward in extreme hyperextension and the body forms a reverse bow.

For several weeks he underwent a variety of treatments. About a month after he was admitted to the WRC, some of his neurological signs had improved but he was deemed unreleasable back into the wild.

That’s where the Minnesota Zoo stepped in. The Zoo had been looking for a pileated woodpecker for its aviary on the Medtronic Minnesota Trail. Upon hearing that the WRC wanted to find a home for this striking bird, the Zoo’s aviary staff expressed interest and received the bird in early fall.

Since his arrival at the Minnesota Zoo, the woodpecker—who has not yet been named—has been improving every day. Zoo keepers had to wait until the weather got warmer to make sure he was able to maneuver his new exhibit, so during the winter and spring months, they worked with him behind the scenes in a large area—complete with logs, stumps, and tree branches—to “teach” him how to be a woodpecker, to the best of his ability.

“We are pleased to work in cooperation with WRC to provide a home for this wonderful bird, at our Medtronic Minnesota Trail where millions of zoo guests will have a chance to appreciate him,” said Minnesota Zoo Director/CEO Lee Ehmke. “Our bird department, led by Supervisor Jimmy Pichner, has a great deal of experience working with woodpeckers, so we are wellprepared to provide expert care for a species not often exhibited in zoos.”

Adds Phil Jenni, WRC executive director: “Everyone involved, from the veterinary staff to the avian interns and volunteers, invested a lot of time helping this severely injured patient. Pileated woodpeckers are very charismatic birds, and it’s wonderful that thousands of families will now have the chance to see this incredible species at the Minnesota Zoo.”

About the WRC: The Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Minnesota (WRC) is an emergency veterinary hospital hat provides free medical care for more than 200 different species of injured and orphaned wild animals. WRC is located at 2530 Dale Street, Roseville. For more information please call 651.486.9453 or visit the WRC website.