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San Pedro, CA
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| Before
surgery begins, juvenile brown
pelican with a torn pouch.
(IBRRC photo) |
A
juvenile California brown pelican,
whose pouch was almost completely
torn off, is now doing well at International
Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC)
in San Pedro California. The bird
underwent a delicate, three and
a half hour surgery, requiring hundreds
of stitches. Veterinarian, Heather
Nevill, who performed the surgery,
said the bird’s prognosis
is good.
The young pelican was
found dying on a Santa Barbara beach.
He was half his normal weight. It’s
not known how his pouch was torn
but without a pouch he would either
starve to death or drown.
When deemed ready for
release, this bird will become part
of IBRRC’s new Pelican Partner
program. For a $500 adoption fee,
a pelican lover can be present at
their bird’s final exam and
banding, and can open the cage door
to release it back to the wild.
The fee helps pay for this endangered
species care. The adopter also receives
a certificate with the bird’s
Federal band number.
More information about
IBRRC’s work and other bird
adoption programs, which start at
$25, can be found on their website
at www.ibrrc.org.
See recent news report:
http://cbs2.com/video/?id=11694@kcbs.dayport.com
IBRRC has been helping
birds around the world since 1971.
Its mission is to mitigate human
impact on aquatic birds and other
wildlife. This is achieved through
rehabilitation, emergency response,
education, research, planning and
training.
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