GREENVILLE -- Three months ago, Catfish could not do what eagles do..and that's fly. On Thanksgiving Day, Catfish came to the Downeast Rehabilitation Center in Ayden with a broken wing. Now, the wing has healed and the eagle is recovering at the Eastern Wildlife Center in Greenville. Mark Ansley works with Catfish.

"He has just gotten off the ground in the last four weeks. So for the first month or so, he could just run and kind of fly. Now, he is able to fly to the taller perches," said Ansley.

Catfish stays in a closed cage in a private location. The cage is 65ft tall. Ansley and other volunteers monitor its eating and flying habits before moving forward.

"We will lengthen the flight to see if he's getting any better," said Ansley.

The Eastern Wildlife Center is the last chapter in the rehabilitation process. The next step is to see if he can fly higher than 300ft which a creance is used.

"The leg goes through a kangaroo skin belt around the leg. The fabric of the belt will not cause any chafing on the bird. Then the belt is attached to a leash. The leash is then attached to this long lead called a creance. It has a snap swivel and a line. We hold th line and the bird is free flying. The hardest part of flight is getting off the ground," said Ansley.

Catfish will need to land and take off several time with the creance before being set free.

"This bird has got to fly a mile or so very easily," said Ansley.

TORI TIDBIT: A bald eagles feathers will not turn white around the head until he/she is older than 5-years-old. The white feathers show eagles of the opposite sex, he/she is ready to mate.