While on a boat in the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia, Canada, a family spotted a bald eagle with waterlogged feathers ‘swimming’ in the ocean. They took the struggling raptor out of the water and tried to dry it off on the boat using their jackets and sweaters. One of the bystanders who pulled the bald eagle from the water immediately contacted Canada’s Department of Natural Resources. Once on shore, they brought the eagle to the Cobequid Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre nearby.

At the Cobequid Centre, the caregivers found that the eagle’s talons were missing from its right foot, speculating that the raptor could have been injured from a trap. The centre also posted on their website that the eagle may have flown too close to the water while trying to catch a fish and was unable to fly with wet wings. The Cobequid Centre kept the eagle for a short period of time to ensure that it was in flying shape before sending it off into the wild.