This bird has flown! RCMP lose track of rescued bald eagle

It's said that the Mounties always get their man,but RCMP in B.C.havelost track of a bald eagle rescued on the banks of the Illecillewaet River two months ago.

Revelstoke RCMP got a call on Dec. 16about an injured eagle on the edge of the river.

Revelstoke does not have a conservation officer so before heading out, the two Mountieswatched a YouTube video on how to rescue a live bird.

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When they arrived at the river they soon found Illi, a wounded bald eagle with a broken wing, who was near death.

Armed with a hockey stick and some salmon, Cpl. Thomas Blakney and his partner lured the bird towards them and tossed a blanket over its head.

"I am a big fan of hockey and I play it myself," Blakney said of his stick."It's a good tool. I never thought I'd use it to capture an eagle, though."

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Release comes early

The wounded bird was taken into custody, then transferred to the Fawcett Family Wildlife Health Centre in Kamloops to recover.

There, the bird they named Illibegan to recover after receivinga blood transfusion.

The rehabilitation centre and Mounties planned a public release this spring.

"We were making arrangements here in Revelstoke to do a ceremonial release," Blakneysaid."They like to release eagles exactly from the area they were captured from."

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But Illi had other ideas.

On Wednesday, while a handler was in her cage, Illi attacked and then flew out an open door.

"Fortunately she wasn't hurt but Illi managed to get out of the cage,"Blakneysaid.

The rehabilitation centre was apologetic, but Blakneyconsiders the bird's escape to bea fitting ending.

"She literally flew the coop," he said. "It just shows you how smart she was. She took advantage of an opportunity and can enjoy the outdoors without being incarcerated."

With files from Bob Keating