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As Saturday approaches, the US Military Academy is preparing to play a football match against the Air Force Academy visiting West Point, New York. York, in a fierce confrontation of his rivals.
And with the rivalry came an idea of evil.
But a West Point cadet project aimed at sweeping two hawks belonging to the Air Force Academy has resulted in the death of one of the birds, the beginning of an investigation and an apology West Point.
The episode began Friday night, announced Sunday Sam Dollar, adviser to the Air Force's falconry team at the Academy.
Aurora, a 22-year-old gyrfalcon, the Academy's official mascot, and Oblio, a seven-year-old peregrine falcon, were captured by two West Point cadets.
They threw sweaters over the birds and stuffed them into dog crates, Dollar said.
The cadets returned the birds on Saturday morning, but not until Aurora had galls on her wings, probably when she struggled inside the crate, Dollar said. Aurora's injuries were not life-threatening and she needed to be seen by a veterinarian on Sunday, he said. Oblio has not suffered any obvious injuries.
"I think they kept them for a few hours and then they realized that it was a big mistake," Mr. Dollar said. "When Aurora started struggling in the crate, they decided that it was not a good thing."
The media recounted this episode by calling for the discipline of Aurora's Injury Officers.
Some are angry on Facebook and Twitter that if the West Point cadets were responsible, they should be deported, or West Point should be held responsible. Some called the reports "shameful" of the military, noting that the West Point cadet code of honor states that "a cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, and tolerate not those who do it. "
"It annoys me," Dollar said. "I'm more about the health and well-being of birds. I understand them jokes and do things and things like that. "
But Mr. Dollar said that hawks needed special care and that their handling was tightly regulated by the Federal Service for Sport Fishing and Wildlife, among other agencies.
"Unless you get a federal license, you can not even touch them," he said. Air Force cadets who work with hawks undergo a two-month training and must pbad an exam before being able to handle the birds.
Mr. Dollar did not know where the birds had been taken or where they had been returned, although he said that hawks, as well as another, an American kennel named Zeus, were sleeping. in a house close to the Air Force football team during his visit to the West. Point.
Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Chevelle, a spokeswoman for West Point, said Sunday that the Military Academy sincerely apologizes for an incident involving the United States of America. the cadets and the hawks of the Air Force Academy.
"One of the birds was injured and the case is currently under investigation," said Colonel Thomas. "We take this situation very seriously."
She added that West Point had apologized to the Air Force Academy and that "this event does not reflect" the core values of the military and the military academy, namely "dignity and respect ".
Troy Garnhart, badistant athletic director for strategic communications at the Air Force Academy, said he did not know where and how Aurora had been found injured.
The US Military Academy has a long history of pranks and football, especially in the days leading up to the match between the army and the navy. The mascots were the target of these jokes.
In 1991, after the aspirants broke into a West Point veterinary clinic, took four army mules and were chased by helicopters, the two academies signed a pact exempting the mascots from their pranks.
Then, in 2002, one of the Navy Academy's goats was stolen, apparently by West Point cadets.
Joe Kosakowski, regional director of the North American Falconers Association, said that Aurora would be considered old because hawks can have a life span of up to about 25 years. Mr. Kosakowski said falcon wings, although flexible, had hollow bones, and that these could be injured "incidentally if someone does not know how to handle a bird".
Kosakowski said falcons suffer regular wing injuries and many can be cared for and live.
Mr. Dollar said he wanted to demystify reports that Aurora's injuries would threaten his life or could be euthanized. He said that Aurora had no broken bones and that he was waiting for her to be able to fly again.
"They scuffed her wings a bit, putting her in a box that was probably too small for her," Dollar said. "A little antibiotic, food and rest and everything will be fine."
He added that his injuries could have been much worse if the cadets had not had a "moment of clarity" to bring the hawks back inside.
He said that some hawks fly and play during games, but only home games. Falcons taken by the Air Force Academy are called "presentation birds" with which people take mostly photos. According to an Air Force Academy press release issued in 2011, the whitish color of Aurora is rare and only occurs in 1% of constituencies.
The Falcons were chosen as mascots for the Air Force Academy in 1955, and Aurora is the oldest of the 10 members of the falconry program, Dollar said.
By the way, the army beat the air force 17 to 14 Saturday.
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