Football, Fans and Feathers raptor show Fridays before Auburn’s home football games
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One of Auburn University’s most popular fall programs–the Southeastern Raptor Center’s Football, Fans and Feathers–returns to offer fans the opportunity to see a raptor show and flight demonstration. The educational programs will be held each Friday before home football games beginning Sept. 1.
This year, seven shows will coincide with home football games, giving fans the opportunity to learn about education, conservation and rehabilitation of injured birds of prey and see them in flight.
Shows will be held Sept. 1, 15 and 29; Oct. 6 and Nov. 10, 17 and 24. No post-season shows are scheduled.
Tickets are $5 per person–with children under three admitted free–for the hour-long program which begins at 4 p.m. at the center’s 350-seat Edgar B. Carter Educational Amphitheater, located at 1350 Pratt-Carden Drive off Shug Jordan Parkway. Reservations are not required. Refreshments will be sold.
During the show, hawks, falcons, eagles and other birds of prey are free-flown from towers and around the amphitheater, enabling visitors to see these raptors flying close. The programs are delivered by raptor specialist Andrew Hopkins, who is assisted by staff and volunteers of the Southeastern Raptor Center.
All birds used in the programs are permanent residents that are non-releasable due to prior injuries or human imprinting. The Southeastern Raptor Center is a division of the Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine.
The center is closed to the public except for specific dates. For group private tours, or for more information about Football, Fans and Feathers, call 334-844-6943.
For more information, go to www.auburn.edu/raptor. For directions using GPS, use 1350 Raptor Road. Roadside signs on Shug Jordan Parkway mark the program’s location on the day of each show. Pratt-Carden Drive is located off Shug Jordan Parkway just north of the Wire Road intersection.
The mission of the Southeastern Raptor Center is rehabilitation of injured or orphaned raptors and to educate the public about birds of prey.
Related Media
Raptor Specialist Rhett LaPortte demonstrates a raptor in flight during one of last year's Football, Fans and Feathers educational program. The event is held on Friday before each Auburn home football game.
A raptor soars over the amphitheater during a training flight in preparation for the Football, Fans and Feathers educational event. The event is held on Friday before each Auburn home football game.
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Media interested in this story can contact Communications Director Preston Sparks at (334) 844-9999 or preston.sparks@auburn.edu.
The College of Veterinary Medicine is the South's original and nation's seventh oldest veterinary medical program, celebrating 126 years. We prepare individuals for careers of excellence in veterinary medicine, including private and public practice, industrial medicine, academics, and research. The college provides programs of instruction, research, outreach, and service that are in the best interests of the citizens of the state of Alabama, the region, the nation, and the world.
