LAYTON -- Ruffled feathers were cause for awe and excitement at Sand Springs Elementary School on Friday morning.
Large golden eyes constantly scanning the room and a wing span of more than 5 feet made it easy to understand why a chorus of "oohs" and one whispered "cool" came from a group of second-graders as Bebe, a Eurasian eagle-owl, shook and fluffed up her feathers.
Marla Ridges, a second-grade teacher at the school, arranged the visit of not only the owl, one of the largest of its species, but also a golden eagle named Gondo.
"Experiences like these open their minds and their desire to learn more," Ridges said of students. "Writing a report out of a book and writing about what they learned about Gondo, who they saw today, is completely different."
The two birds of prey were accompanied by their handler, Debbie Petersen, who works for Skyking Birds, of Centerville, and is a docent at Hogle Zoo.
"These two birds grab their food with their feet and their long talons," she explained to the students. "Raptor is Latin for one who seizes and carries off."
A thick leather glove protected Petersen from Gondo's large talons as he perched on her arm. Meanwhile, she shared many other facts that clearly impressed the students.
"She can see a rabbit five miles away," Petersen said of the golden eagle.
The students learned new bird-related words, such as habitat, nocturnal and rousing, which describes the bird's movement in fluffing up its feathers. Many of these facts stuck with the second-graders.
"I thought it was really cool," said Micah Parkinson. "The owl was a girl, and it's bigger than the boys, because, like, (with) humans, the boys are usually bigger than the girls. I am really happy that they came."
Petersen explained to the students the eating habits of birds of prey, including the fact that the golden eagle has the ability to knock a deer or an elk off a cliff.
"The eagle could go up in the air and dive down 200 miles an hour," said Carter Johnson. "If I saw that, I would run for my life."
Ridges hopes that, in addition to teaching her students about the animals, this experience will help bring them closer to nature.
"It makes connections for children," she said. "Our children are so tuned in to video games and TVs, they don't go outside and explore like they used to. This makes that possible."
At the end of the presentation, Petersen explained to the students how some birds of prey are endangered because of human activities and how the students can help by reducing, reusing and recycling.
"Humans have the right to use the resources of the earth as much as animals do, but we have to be a little more careful, because we are the stewards. We are in charge of the world," she said.
Petersen said she enjoys sharing the birds with younger students because they get so excited.
"I hope they learn while they are young that they do share this earth with other animals and people," she said.
"If they are able to experience animals that they most likely don't see on a day-to-day basis and learn to appreciate them, I think they will transfer that caring into responsibility."
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