Jason Dunovant

MONETA — A bald eagle returned to the wild in front of dozens of onlookers at the Smith Mountain Lake Community Park on Tuesday.

Members of the Wildlife Center of Virginia opened up the cage holding the massive raptor along the shoreline of the lake. The eagle made a few apprehensive steps out of the cage, took in his surroundings, then took off over the water from the Franklin County shoreline.

The bald eagle, known at the wildlife center as patient 25-3592, was released not far from where he was first discovered in Franklin County. The eagle was taken to the Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke County on Sept. 5 after it was first discovered in Rocky Mount.

Connor Gillespie, director of outreach for the Wildlife Center of Virginia, said the eagle was battered

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