Auburn has a tradition before every home game in which its live eagle mascot takes flight in Jordan-Hare Stadium and lands (or attempts to) on its trainer.

However, with the COVID-19 pandemic going on, the SEC has put in place a policy of not having any live animals on the field this fall. That applies to Uga at Georgia, Reveille at Texas A&M and others around the conference.

On Thursday, the Auburn eagle trainer, Andrew Hopkins, revealed that the eagle will not fly this year to comply with the policy:

War Eagle VIII has been with the Auburn program since Nov. 23 of last year. War Eagle VIII’s name is Aurea, and she replaced Nova, who was War Eagle VII.

Aurea was found near Selma, Alabama, and according to her profile, weighs in at 7.7 pounds with a 6.5-foot wingspan.