Ithaca was hatched by the Cornell Raptor Program in 2017 for the purpose of conservation. Red-shouldered Hawk populations in the Northeast have experienced declines, and so captive-reared chicks were meant to be released into the wild. Unfortunately, Ithaca was unable to be released due to feather follicle damage sustained while she was infected with West Nile Virus as a chick. Though she survived, Ithaca is not capable of flight. Instead, she came to VINS to become an Ambassador for her species.