Hok’si’da was a juvenile Bald Eagle and the National Eagle Center’s shortest-tenured Eagle Ambassador. A lot remains unknown about his condition, but we do know that he was hatched with a congenital defect in his skull that directly impacted his eyes.

He was found wandering on a beach in Port Orchard, WA in 2015, and rescued after he was observed doing so for five days which was extremely unusual behavior. He was brought to the West Sound Wildlife Shelter on Bainbridge Island, WA where it was discovered that he had a massive infection around his eyes caused by tearing and discharge. A deformity in his skull resulted in his eyes bulging and it appeared that Hok’si’da had a malformed sinus cavity. He was unable to keep his eyes clean naturally. As a result, he was deemed unreleasable and found a home at the National Eagle Center in the fall of that same year.

Upon his arrival at the Center in Wabasha, our Avian Care team quickly went to work on Hok’si’da’s training. The Center held a public naming contest and the name “Hok’si’da” – Little Boy in the Dakota language – was chosen. In the spring of 2017, he made his public debut during our annual SOAR With the Eagles festival.

Unfortunately, it was not long after his public debut that his health rapidly declined. He would unexpectedly lose balance and fall off of his perches, he began to have trouble eating, and his sinus cavity appeared to be collapsing. With a very poor prognosis and not wanting him to suffer, the extremely difficult decision was made to say goodbye to Hok’si’da in August of 2017. 

• Male
• Hatched in 2015
• Rescued near Port Orchard, Washington
• Arrived at Center in 2015
• Died in 2017