Peregrine Falcon returns to skies after being shot

Madame X

Reprinted with permission of Wisconsin Humane Society

Meet Madame X, the Peregrine Falcon who was shot last February in West Allis. After months of rehabilitation for her injuries, she stunned us all by making a full recovery. The falcon was released by Wildlife Director Scott Diehl in the Horicon Marsh in mid-June.

The injured falcon was originally discovered outside a tavern at 55th & Grant in West Allis, and promptly brought to the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center at WHS for care. Due to the severity of her injuries, her long term prognosis was guarded. She suffered not only from internal injuries, but a broken coracoid bone, which could have prevented her from flying again.

Peregrine Falcons are native to Wisconsin, but the widespread use of the pesticide DDT decimated their population by the 1960s. A reintroduction campaign started by Peregrine Manager/Researcher and Wisconsin native Greg Septon in 1986 has made steady strides in reestablishing the Peregrine Falcon in Wisconsin. There are currently 32 nesting sites in Wisconsin, and Madame X hatched her first chicks last spring at the We Energies power plant in Wauwatosa.

When the leadership at the We Energies Foundation heard the news about the shooting, they graciously decided to make a $2,500 donation toward the falcon’s medical care and treatment. The Wildlife Rehabilitation Center at the Wisconsin Humane Society receives no government funding for its work in caring for 5,000 wild animals a year, and this support from We Energies Foundation is deeply appreciated. Such support is what made Madame X’s return to the skies possible!

Foundation supports recovery of injured peregrine falcon

Madame X, an adult female peregrine falcon that has nested at the Milwaukee County Power Plant, was found shot and seriously injured in West Allis on Feb. 27. She was unable to fly and in obvious distress. She is being cared for at the Wisconsin Humane Society’s Wildlife Rehabilitation Center (WRC).

Madame X suffered extensive injuries. Several shotgun pellets were lodged in her body, and she also had a broken collar bone. She likely will not fly again. Nevertheless, she is improving, and the staff at the rehabilitation center is impressed by her feistiness and hearty appetite.

Authorities believe Madame X was purposely shot and are asking for the public’s help in making an arrest. The falcon was found around 2 p.m. in a yard outside the Cocktails & Dreams tavern at 55th and Grant streets in West Allis. Anyone who heard or saw anything unusual during this timeframe is asked to call West Allis Crime Stoppers at 414-476-2274. Callers may request confidentiality.

A $5,000 reward is being offered by the Humane Society of the United States and the Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the responsible party. The We Energies Foundation also is contributing $2,500 to the WRC for Madame X’s continued care and recovery.

We Energies has been involved in Wisconsin’s peregrine falcon recovery effort since the early 1990s. The company sponsored the release of captive-produced peregrines and then installed nest boxes at six power plant sites. To date, nearly 200 peregrines have been produced at company facilities. Last year, peregrines nesting at We Energies power plants accounted for 20 percent of Wisconsin’s total state production.

Peregrine falcons are listed as an endangered species in Wisconsin. They also are protected under the Federal Migratory Bird Act. Shooting a peregrine falcon is a serious crime, punishable by jail time and fines. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is the lead investigative agency in this case.

Foundation forms long-lasting sponsorship with Stars and Stripes Honor Flight

Stars and Stripes Honor Flight, Wisconsin’s branch of the national Honor Flight Network, sponsors trips for veterans to visit their war memorials in Washington, D.C. Since its inception, We Energies Foundation has provided ongoing support for the organization and the veterans it serves.

The national Honor Flight Network started in 2004 when Earl Morse, a physician assistant and retired Air Force captain, asked his patients at a Veterans Administration clinic in Ohio whether they would ever travel to visit their recently completed memorial in Washington, D.C. Most replied that they couldn’t make the trip – financially or physically – on their own.

As a private pilot, Morse offered to fly one of his patients to see the memorial for free. His patient graciously accepted. So did another a week later. Realizing that many veterans would react the same way, Morse began asking for help from other pilots. All he asked was that the veterans be flown to D.C. free of charge and that they be escorted during their visit. Eleven pilots volunteered, and Honor Flight was born.

Just a few years later, Wisconsin Stars and Stripes Honor Flights (SSHF) had its inaugural flight of 70 veterans. Our foundation supported that first flight in November 2008 and continues to support the effort, which has made 19 more flights involving nearly 3,000 veterans through 2013.

In 2013, SSHF began a transition to fly Korean War veterans to see their memorial. Some 40,000 Korean War-era veterans live in Wisconsin.

In addition to the Honor Flights, our company and foundation also has supported other SSHF activities:

• Underwriting the production and packaging of a limited-edition DVD of the documentary film “Honor Flight,” which was released nationwide in May 2013. The purchase of each DVD supported the mission of flying additional veterans to Washington, D.C. The film featured four Milwaukee-area World War II veterans and the local volunteers. Honor Flight hubs across the nation continue to use the film to heighten awareness of the program and raise funds for flights from their own communities.

• Sponsoring the film’s premiere at Milwaukee’s Miller Park on Aug. 11, 2012, which set a Guinness World Record for the largest film screening ever – 28,442. 

• Underwriting “Honor Flight: A Visual Journey,” a book produced in 2013 that celebrates the Stars and Stripes Honor Flights. The book includes five years of photographs from 18 Honor Flights to find the most moving images that tell the Honor Flight story through the eyes of our nation’s aging heroes. Proceeds from the book benefit Honor Flight and Fisher House Wisconsin.