Meet a Raptor: Freyja the Peregrine Falcon

Freyja the Peregrine Falcon is the star of a "Meet a Raptor" session at the Eagle Creek Park Ornithology Center on Sunday, October 18, from 2:30 to 3:00 PM. Freyja will be accompanied by her trainer and park volunteer Donna McCarty, who'll be there to talk about her while she's out. The session is part of the 11th annual Owl Fest, so it's one of several things happening around the park that weekend.

If you've never been, the Ornithology Center is the birding hub of Eagle Creek Park. The building itself has a bit of a story: it was once the private library of J.K. Lilly and spent 30 years as the park's Nature Center before reopening in 2010. The site is designated an Audubon Important Bird Area and sits on the Indiana Birding Trail, with more than 280 of Indiana's 419 bird species recorded there. It's a serious spot for anyone who likes watching birds.

Freyja is one of the center's Raptor Ambassadors—non-releasable birds of prey kept because of injury or imprinting. She shares the Carlsen Aviary with Carson the Bald Eagle, Obi the Barn Owl, and Minerva the Great Horned Owl, and they all take turns starring in the center's educational programs. The center runs over 150 public programs a year, and the Ornithology Center Fund, managed by the Eagle Creek Park Foundation, supports the care of these birds. Along with Owl Fest, the center also hosts Falcon Fridays and Raptor Feeding Time.

The session is free with park admission, which is $6 per vehicle for Marion County residents and $8 for nonresidents. You'll find the center at 6515 Delong Rd, Indianapolis, IN 46278.