The Avian Reconditioning Center for Birds of Prey

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Apopka, FL
The Avian Reconditioning Center for Birds of Prey

Raptor conservation, education, rehabilitation, and falconry. Open on Saturdays, weather permitting. ARC receives no federal or state funding.
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The Avian Reconditioning Center, or ARC, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit bird of prey rehabilitation and education facility in Apopka, FL sitting on 10 acres. Since 2001, ARC has realized its mission through dedication to raptor rehabilitation, education, research, and falconry, thereby increasing public awareness, knowledge, and appreciation of Florida’s magnificent raptors and the natural habitats in w

hich they live. ARC helps raise nestlings with surrogate parents, rehabilitates injured raptors, releases raptors back to the wild, and provides a permanent home for those who would not survive on their own. We are open to the public on Saturdays, weather permitting. Our main public display area is our pavilion where our education birds are perched. Our volunteer handlers will gladly hold one of our education birds on the glove so you can view the bird up close! Flight demonstrations are held throughout the day, weather permitting. We also have an indoor classroom and library, and an indoor gift shop with restroom facilities.

09/04/2026

Tomorrow is not only our first day back open after our August break, it's also International Vulture Awareness Day! Come visit us and our resident black vulture, Lavinia, to learn all about these amazing birds.

Vultures might have a bad reputation for being gross (not true!) and eating carrion (true!), but vultures like Lavinia are incredibly important to the environment. They eat messy things, but vultures do a great job keeping themselves clean. They spend a lot of time preening and even enjoy taking baths. Lavinia loves a good bath and enjoys playing in the rain. After happily galloping around in a recent shower, she paused for a quick picture before starting her preening session!

Come visit us and meet Lavinia tomorrow between 10 AM and 4 PM (weather permitting; birds begin going home at 3 PM). Admission is $5 per person, and children ages five and under are free.

09/02/2026

❤️ Thank you for supporting our mission to save and protect raptors! Thanks to your generous contributions, we raised over $1,200 at Hollerbach's German Meat Bingo to care for injured, orphaned, and ambassador birds of prey.

❤️ 𝐕𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐧 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐤 to Hollerbach's German Restaurant and Bicikleta Bike Shop's Get Sanford Cycling for hosting The Avian Reconditioning Center for Birds of Prey at last night's German Meat Bingo!

09/01/2026

Araés wants to know… How big is your wingspan?

📆 Tuesday, September 1st (Tonight!)
🦅 6:00 PM, meet Araés the Swallow-tailed Kite on the patio
🕡 6:30 PM, first bingo game begins inside
📍 Hollerbach's German Restaurant
💸 Bring cash to maximize your impact!

Bingo cards are $5 to play all night. Triple your chances of winning for $10 with triple decker bingo cards! Winners from each round take home meat generously donated by Hollerbach's German Market!

Raffle tickets are $5 for six or $20 for your wingspan of tickets! 50/50 cash raffle where the winner takes home half of the pot!

Hollerbach's Meat Bingo with the Avian Reconditioning Center

08/29/2026

It’s that time of year again when we say goodbye to the swallow-tailed kites as they head south for their annual migration. If you’re anything like us at ARC, you’re already missing their incredible aerial maneuvers, striking silhouettes, and the excitement of shouting, “Kite, kite, kite!” whenever one flies overhead.

Missing them too? The good news is you can still see one up close in downtown Sanford this Tuesday! Our ambassador swallow-tailed kite, Araés, will be making a special "migration" to Hollerbach's German Restaurant for German Meat Bingo!

Araés came to ARC in the spring of 2022 after being found on the ground with two fractures in his right ulna. While the bones healed, the surrounding nerve and tissue damage left his right wing with a permanent droop. Though Araés can still manage brief flights, he isn't able to sustain the endurance required for a 10,000-mile annual migration.

📆 Tuesday, September 1st
🕕 6:00 PM (first bingo game starts around 6:30 PM)
📍 Hollerbach's German Restaurant
💸 Bring cash to maximize your impact!

Bingo cards are $5 to play all night. Triple your chances of winning for $10 with triple decker bingo cards! Winners from each round take home meat generously donated by Hollerbach's German Market!

Raffle tickets are $5 for six or $20 for your wingspan of tickets! 50/50 cash raffle where the winner takes home half of the pot!

Help Support the Avian Reconditioning Center!
Proceeds from bingo card and raffle ticket sales will benefit raptor care at the Avian Reconditioning Center (ARC), which includes food and medication. ARC is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that raises orphaned nestlings with surrogate parents, rehabilitates injured raptors, releases healthy raptors back to the wild, and provides a permanent home for those who would not survive on their own.

08/27/2026

It’s no secret that owls have incredible hearing, but actually seeing one of their ears? That’s a whole different story.

Normally hidden beneath dense, fluffy feathers, Mrs. P., our barred owl, reveals her ear after thoroughly soaking herself during a bath. That large opening on the side of her head is actually her ear! Incredible, isn't it?

08/25/2026

With keen eyesight and talons that act like precise tweezers grabbing insects right out of the air, the ambassador joining us for German Meat Bingo is our Swallow-tailed Kite, Araés!

Come meet Araés and learn all about Swallow-tailed Kites on the patio before German Meat Bingo starts!

Hollerbach's Meat Bingo with the Avian Reconditioning Center
📆 Tuesday, September 1st
📍 Hollerbach's German Restaurant
🕕 6:00 PM (first bingo game starts around 6:30 PM)

💸 Bring cash to maximize your impact!

Bingo cards are $5 to play all night. Triple your chances of winning for $10 with triple decker bingo cards! Winners from each round take home meat generously donated by Hollerbach's German Market!

Raffle tickets are $5 for six or $20 for your wingspan of tickets! 50/50 cash raffle where the winner takes home half of the pot!

08/21/2026

Lots of raptors eat insects, and we had some great guesses on Wednesday’s post!

Some of the biggest insect lovers on our card are Mississippi kites, swallow-tailed kites, American kestrels, and eastern screech-owls. But insects are also on the menu for plenty of others, including red-shouldered hawks, barred owls, and even crested caracaras!

For our next hint, it’s all in how they hunt: This raptor sticks strictly to the treetops and the sky, grabbing insects right out of the air with amazing precision!

Who do you think our special guest is? Let us know below!

Hollerbach's Meat Bingo with the Avian Reconditioning Center
September 1st - 6:00PM

08/19/2026

German Meat Bingo is less than two weeks away!

So, now for the big question: which one of our amazing ambassadors will be joining us?

Check out the Bingo card below featuring twenty-four of our resident birds. One of these birds will be making an appearance at Hollerbach's German Restaurant on Tuesday, September 1st, before bingo kicks off at 6:00 PM!

Here’s your first hint: This raptor is known to eat insects, and lots of them!

Who do you think it is? Drop your best guess in the comments below!

08/17/2026

Our Fall Falconry Experiences are now available! Enjoy a private, 45-minute session for two featuring Ella, our barn owl, or Ford, our aplomado falcon.

Owl Experience (Featuring Ella)
-Meet a general falconer and learn about the ancient sport of falconry.
-Learn how to safely hold a barn owl on your gloved hand.
-Pose for photos with Ella perched on your glove.

Falcon Experience (Featuring Ford)
-Meet a general falconer and learn about the ancient sport of falconry.
-Learn how to safely hold an aplomado falcon on your gloved hand.
-Experience the thrill of having Ford fly directly to your gloved hand.

Visit our website at www.arc4raptors.org to learn more and book your experience today!

08/14/2026

When you get caught taking a bath... 🦉featuring barred owl, Mrs. P!

Address

323 Lester Road
Apopka, FL
32712

Opening Hours

10am - 1pm

Telephone

+14074611056

Website

https://www.arc4raptors.org/

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