Combining her passion for wildlife and desire to serve,

sophomore Leia Cathell began volunteering in the fall at the

the Raptor Rehab Facility of Central Arkansas. Jerry Eberly

Katrina Aardema
Zach Abney
Kayla Adams
Mady Alexander
Kelsey Allen

Braden Allman
Quinton Anderson
Jonathan Andrew
Rachel Autrey
Philip Baird

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L E I A C AT H E L L
Rescues Raptors

he Raptor Rehab Facility of Central Arkansas, located in El Paso,

Ark., housed various birds of prey with the goal of releasing the
birds back into the wild.
According to the Raptor Research Foundation, Hundreds of
thousands of wild birds get injured, or emaciated, or just lost from their
natal area every year. RRFCA existed to work against that statistic.
Sophomore Leia Cathell, a criminal justice major, found the
refuge to be a place for her compassionate nature, gentle touch
and willingness to serve.
Cathell worked at the humane society in 2012 and took an
environmental science class over the summer. Already interested in
falconry, Cathell asked her teacher if there were any local volunteer
opportunities to work with birds of prey. Luckily, RRFCA was less
than an hour away and fit Cathells vision perfectly.
Begun in 2003, RRFCA took injured, sick or orphaned birds of
prey, including bald eagles, hawks, owls and falcons and released
them back into the wild after a period of rehabilitation, according to
the Facebook page. In its 10 years of existence, the facility released
800 birds back into the wild. Though the donation-based, non-profit
rehabilitation center was not open to the public, it did have education
birds, or birds that the staff took to various programs around the
county to educate people about birds of prey. RRFCA was the only
facility of its kind in Arkansas.
According to Cathell, working with the birds required a tangible
patience and peace that communicated trustworthiness to the
birds. This was important because if the birds were not comfortable
around someone, working with them could be almost impossible.
You need to have a very calm disposition and work well with
animals in general, Cathell said. If you panic, then the bird will panic,

and if youre afraid of the bird, then the bird is going to know that.
Cathell, who began volunteering at RRCA in the fall, volunteered
alongside freshman Dean Oden. Oden had known Cathell for two
years prior to beginning their volunteer work together. Tasks that
they both did on a regular basis included cleaning up after the birds
and feeding them. They often worked with the birds not ready to
be released into the wild so that they were used to being handled.
Cathell also explained that volunteers were required to have a
basic knowledge of the anatomy of a bird so they could better help
during the medical examinations of each bird. Cathell and Oden
both shared an interest in nursing these injured birds of prey back
to health.
Ron Paul, the director and founder of RRFCA, spoke highly of
Cathell and the work she had done with the facility.
There is a knack to working with raptors, Paul said. We do
provide the training to work with the birds. That is for the safety of
the volunteer and the birds. Leia has been a tremendous help to us.
She is a valuable asset to RRFCA.
Working with birds of prey required more than just the basic
training provided at the facility; it required dedication to a challenging
job that did not come with a paycheck.
She has a real passion for working and helping the birds, and
she works very hard at the facility, Oden said.
Cathell wanted to combine her passion for wildlife with her
criminal justice degree and become a park ranger. Her work with
RRCA birds introduced her to the personality and needs of wildlife,
preparing her for the work she ultimately hoped to do as well as
teaching her patience and gentleness.
Marianna Woodruff

Garrett Bender
Camille Benning
Devin Benson
Kristen Betts
Kai Bishop

Aaron Bissell
Olivia Bissell
Wesley Bland
Derek Bolton
Jon Boyd

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