A planned educational enclosure dedicated to raptors will bring some extraordinary birds even closer to the general public, thanks to a partnership with the UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden and the UC Davis California Raptor Center (CRC). The new habitat will be funded through philanthropy – with fundraising effortscurrently under way
For more than 50 years, the California Raptor Center at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine has been dedicated to the rehabilitation of injured and orphaned raptors and providing wildlife education across the region. Authorized by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the CRC is unique in California because of its affiliation with the veterinary medical teaching hospital.
"The new enclosures will set a national standard of care for our birds while enhancing the visitor and educational experience, and will raise the profile of our unique center,” said Dr. Michelle Hawkins, director of the California Raptor Center.
The raptors will be housed in a special habitat built along the Arboretum and Public Garden just east of the Veterinary Medical Complex (VMC). The enclosure will showcase the birds amidst the diverse collection of California natural habitats that leverage the educational mission of the Arboretum, with its curated plant collections, with the CRC’s mission to educate people about raptors and the important role they play in our environment and in the animal kingdom.
The new enclosures will set a national standard of care for the raptors while enhancing the visitor and educational experience and raising the profile of the unique center. Children from K-12 schools, the general public, and the UC Davis campus community will be able to visit the birds and enclosures throughout the day.
The location of the center is strategic. “There is tremendous synergy for this project, building on a planning framework that has been in the making for more than ten years. This project completes the vision for the area, leveraging the plants, the topography and the restored waterway for visitors and schools to have an immersive experience in the Arboretum,” said Lucas Griffith (B.S., 2000), UC Davis’ Executive Director of Campus Planning and Sustainability.
"With wetlands, riparian forests, oak woodlands and grasslands, the site offers a rich collection of raptor habitat.”
Philanthropy is critical for the project to move forward. “It is an exciting project that has the potential to make a difference for tens of thousands of people,” said Griffith.
“The Arboretum and Public Garden is a living museum, welcoming thousands and thousands of visitors each year,” said Kathleen Socolofsky, Assistant Vice Chancellor and Director of the UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity for the CRC’s educational enclosure as another outreach arm of the Arboretum and Public Garden, providing important education to our campus community and visitors. Our common mission sharing the importance of caring for animals and the environment drives us forward.”
“Donors to this important project will propel that mission forward to an even greater extent,” Socolofsky said.
“The new raptor educational enclosure will be open to anyone, and donors can help make that experience happen.”
Learn more about this inspiring new project and how you can make a difference here.