Raptor Jawns was founded by Courtney Douds, a Master Falconer with over twenty years of experience working with birds of prey. Courtney became obsessed with falconry after seeing the Royal Tenenbaums in theaters as a child, sparking a lifelong passion.
She has volunteered at rehabilitation and research centers focusing on raptors, worked as an instructor at Ireland's School of Falconry, worked in abatement –falconry pest control– on a garbage dump in New Jersey, hunted with the Kazakh berkutchi golden eagle hunters of Mongolia, hunted with red-tails in the United States from 2011-2023 until fully transitioning into wildlife education with her birds of prey.
Kat Morucci is a Vet-PhD Student at the University of Pennsylvania where she focuses on wildlife health and infectious diseases. Prior to starting with Raptor Jawns in the Fall of 2024, she spent 5 years working in raptor rehabilitation and education in the state of California. During her time as a volunteer rehabber, Kat worked with many different types of raptors of varying ages and medical statuses, including vultures, owls, falcons, hawks and eagles. While much of her experience stems from the clinic, Kat’s favorite aspect of avian rehabilitation involved flight-training birds that experienced long-term hospital stays or wing injuries prior to their release back into the wild.
Beyond her work with raptors, Kat is a field biologist and has worked with many wild-ranging animals including hibernating bats, owl monkeys and howler monkeys. Kat is passionate about wildlife biology and education and is excited to be a member of the Raptor Jawns team!
Medusa is our female Eurasian eagle owl, a stunningly beautiful gorgon giantess of a bird, one of the world’s largest owl species. With her incredible orange eyes, gorgeous brown barring, and enormous feathered feet, she makes a striking addition to any event. She is able to be held by a limited number of members of the public ages 15+ for photos or fun during private bookings. She is available for commercial film and photo work. For large parties, public programs, or birthdays for younger children, she is delighted to make an appearance to demonstrate how quickly she can eat up to 15 dead mice in a row.
Hermes is a male lanner falcon, a bird native to Africa and Europe and puts the falcon in falconry. He’s meant for speed, which can be seen in his sleek, streamlined body shape with long, pointed wings and a body built like a bullet. He is able to be held by and flown to members of the public ages 10+ during private bookings. He is available for commercial film and photo work. He can be on display at large events for up to three hours at a time, sitting comfortably – and possibly even sleeping – while hooded.
Medea was the first bird of Raptor Jawns, transferred to our care in February 2020 after being nursed back to health at a wildlife rehabilitation center in Connecticut. She is an enormous female red-tail who was found starving in the woods by passers-by when she was a young hawk who couldn’t figure out how to hunt well enough to survive. Her sizable talons and solid stature show off the power and strength of these magnificent and remarkably common birds found throughout North America. She has a wonderful temperament and is a fantastic bird for public programs. She can be posed next to people in photos for personal use only, but as a wild rescue cannot participate in any commercial photo or film work or held by anyone but the staff and volunteers of Raptor Jawns.
Hecate is the smallest current member of Raptor Jawns. At around 6 ounces, she is not quite pint sized! She was rescued as a chick from a nest site that was unsafe for fledglings. She and her siblings were given to falconers and educators to raise as ambassador birds. Like Medusa, she is imprinted on humans and therefore well adjusted to life in captivity. Because she is a wild rescue like Medea, she can be posed next to people in photos for personal use only, but cannot participate in any commercial photo or film work or be held by anyone but the staff and volunteers of Raptor Jawns.
Send us an email or submit the form and we'll get in touch with you.