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Remember Spunky? Santa came out to Sidney to check on him

Red-tailed Hawk made headlines last year after being stolen, raised by eagles
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Spunky the Red-tailed Hawk is seen in this still image from a YouTube clip, as he is fed by an eagle in the nest where he was raised near Sidney. (YouTube)

Remember Spunky the Red-tailed Hawk?

It seems one little girl in Sidney does, and when she asked about where the hawk – stolen from its nest and raised by eagles last year – may have gone, one of Santa’s elves got on the case.

The Peninsula News Review office received some anonymous mail via a mysterious delivery Thursday with a letter all the way from the North Pole.

Birders a-twitter over Sidney-area eagles caring for a guest in their nest

Inside it reads that Buteo, Santa’s right-hand elf overheard the little girl’s wish after working security detail during the Sidney Sparkles Parade.

“She wished Spunky the hawk would come back to Sidney for a visit,” Buteo writes.

Since Santa is a “very cool guy” he went to find Spunky himself and as it turns out, the hawk is alive and well.

RELATED: Sidney’s famous hawk gets its own day

“I like sitting out in the open and having fresh water baths in the fields,” Spunky told Santa. “I even sit in the middle of the field to eat my food.”

While he misses his friends in Sidney, the farm where Spunky has been living has “lots of trees and wild spaces for birds like me.”

He reported that he has grown all new feathers – nice, bright red tail feathers with a darker coat.

Sidney’s little hawk with pluck continues to thrive

“I like it if people watch me with binoculars but if they try to film with iPhones, they sometimes scare my lunch,” said Spunky, before he fluttered away leaving Santa to pass along the message.

Here at the Review, we hope this update from Santa and his elves reaches everyone in the community who cared about Spunky, and one little girl in particular.

Happy Holidays!


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