This Week at Liberty
August 26, 2025
Hoots, Howls, and Hollers
Megan Mosby
Executive Director
Must-See Events, Programs, and Public Hours – The Busy Fall Season Begins
We are excited to tell you that the time has come to open our doors to public after the summer break. I am also excited to tell you that I am seeing an end to the summer….soon, that is/I hope. Both of these are things to celebrate!
Our doors open to the public hours starting September 3rd at 9:00am. Since we still have to endure the last throes of summer for a bit longer, we will be open until 11:00. Starting in October we will return to our normal 10 to 1:00 public visiting hours.
Teacher Night: Sept. 17th
We will start presenting events as early as September 17th with our Teacher Night designed to show our stuff to classroom teachers throughout the Valley. See the flyer for this event in the email below. An RSVP is required, and we look forward to greeting Valley educators, free of charge, to experience what their students can see if they bring a field trip during the school year. We are partnering with Act One who will also be demonstrating their Virtual Reality classes. It should be a very fun ‘happy hour’.
The Innovators Presentations: Oct 9th
On October 9th we will roll out our new Innovators program starting at 4:30pm. Donors who are interested in impacting specific areas of need will see presentations by staff members to fund new programs, special equipment, and other great additions that just didn’t make it in the regular “budget” for the year. For a donation of $1000 or more, donors are invited to see these presentations and then vote on the ones they are most interested in seeing funded and brought into fruition. They will be provided with a tour to see the accomplishments of last year’s Innovators grant program including the completion of the Cara Cara enclosure, the mammal enclosures, the addition of the Native American Wildlife in Culture education materials, and more. It is a fun event, very organized and respectful of your time including the excitement of deciding the future direction for programs at Liberty Wildlife.
Wishes for Wildlife presents Mammals in the Moonlight: Nov. 1st
On November 1st we present our biggest annual fundraiser, the Wishes for Wildlife auction and dinner. The theme will be Mammals in the Moonlight. This event is back on our campus with a catered dinner and our wonderful silent auction. We will introduce our new mammal ambassadors proudly inhabiting their new enclosures for public viewing with presentation by Wildlife Mammal Biologist Holly Hicks. City of Phoenix Park Rangers will also be on hand with a super telescope viewing of the night skies. (Who’s interested in seeing the Owl Nebula?) Also honored for the evening will be Brooke Bessessen, author, endangered species specialist, and conservationist par excellance! Dinner/guest tables are on sale now, and items for the auction are being accepted now, too. A fun time for all, so don’t miss out!
Native American Culture & Wildlife Celebration: Nov. 16th
Finally, on Sunday, Nov. 16th we will host our 3rd annual Native American Culture and Wildlife Celebration. This all-day event runs from 9am to 4:30pm, and guests will be able to watch Native American Cultural Dances, taste yummy foods, visit Native American vendors, and mingle with the Liberty Wildlife Ambassadors including eagles, owls, falcons, hawks, and vultures. Our mammals will be on view in their new enclosures. There will be something for everyone.
You can check out web site for more information on upcoming events in the fall. We are looking forward to seeing our friends starting September 3rd at our Public Open Hours. And, we will welcome you at the events of your choosing throughout the fall. Stay tuned for more information. And, see you soon!
This Week @ Liberty
The intake total for the year is now up to 7949.
My oh my, what a monsoon we’ve had this year! Granted, in the north valley I either get all of it or none of it, it’s wonderful to see the storms making their way through the Phoenix area. What a lot of people don’t realize is that those storms often knock birds (adult and kids) out of their nests (or trees or cactus or just wherever they choose to hang for the storm). For Liberty Wildlife, this typically means a busy day after the fact. Our rescue/hotline volunteers will be busy with calls and rescues, our medical service team will be hard at work assessing new intakes, our intake volunteers will be hot on their heels working with the public to intake the bird…well, you catch my drift!
Like always, that’s what we’re here for. We’re already in the throes of getting birds through our doors, assessed, and moved where they need to go. Our volunteers are doing a fantastic job, as always, of getting the work done. And of course, all those who are out and about looking for wildlife, and bringing them to our doors, are just as incredible, too!
Keep up the good work, everyone!
What Are They? Paw Print Edition
Whether we see it or not, wildlife is everywhere. It’s in the tiny crevices in the sidewalk, outside your front door on your early morning walk, and of course, those late night wanderers who hunt through moon and starlight. If you’re lucky enough, you’ll see all walks of wildlife when you venture out into the Arizona wilderness (or right in the city, too!), but sometimes that wildlife you’re so hopeful to see is quite a bit more elusive than others. Raptors like barn owls and western screech owls take the night shift, and mammals like coyotes, bobcats and raccoons enjoy the slow activity of human life at night and opt to forage/hunt into the late night hours.
What’s really incredible about Liberty Wildlife being just ten minutes south of the airport is the incredible amount of wildlife we see despite the busyness of the city. And while we don’t always get to see those animals, they often times leave clues they were here; in this case, paw prints.
Right outside the property, along the Rio Salado after a rain storm, we found a few of those prints left behind by those late night hunters. Are you able to tell what they are? Here are some hints:
- This print is identified by the distinct human-hand-ish shape, with five long, slender toes that are spread out. The palm pad appears to be a C-shape, with the hind foot looking more like a human footprint appearance with a thicker heel pad and five long, slender toes. This animal walks in a way that shows the front and back tracks to usually be about two to three inches apart, with the front positioned close to the opposite side’s hind foot. Have you guessed what I am yet? I’m a raccoon!
- This print is quite similar to a dog or coyote. It can be distinguished by four toes, with a round shape and no claw marks, as well as a distinctive M-shaped heel pad. Here’s a clue: without the appearance of claws, this will move you toward the feline family. These prints are typically wider than a dog or coyote, and typically bigger than a domestic cat’s prints. Have you guessed what I am yet? I’m a bobcat!
We don’t know about you, but we absolutely love seeing the remnants our Arizona wildlife leaves behind right outside our doors. It’s a nice reminder that they’re out there, living their best little lives and doing what they do best; being themselves.
Notable Mentions
Well, it’s that time again! August is quickly coming to a close and we’re wrapping up some projects around site. Our mammal enclosures are well on their way to being done (so exciting!) and we’re officially opening back up to the public on Wednesday, September 3rd from 9am-11am. Wishes for Wildlife is happening Nov 1st (you can get tickets already) and several other events are set to happen before we close out the year in just a few short months.
Until then, here are this week’s notable mentions!
- A common chuckwalla undergoes surgery (performed by Midwestern University) to remove a necrotic tail (2 pictures)
- A gopher snake was attacked by a dog (unfortunately) and through one of the punctures, one of the meals he’d eaten became visible (a rodent of some kind!) (3 pictures)
- An American kestrel is called in to hotline for rescue (fractured radius/ulna) (1 picture)
- I spy with my little eye (at my house on a very early morning)…a great horned owl!( 1 picture)
As always, thanks again for reading and hanging with us! Keep an eye out for all these future events we got going on, I promise you won’t want to miss them!
Until next time!
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