Eleven pelicans found with wings snapped
Huntington Beach, CA (US)Incident Date: Wednesday, Sep 17, 2008
County: Orange
Disposition: Open
Case Images: 2 files available
Suspect(s) Unknown - We need your help!
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available
Wildlife officials say the attacks appear to be intentional: 'Someone is snapping the wings backward.' A $5,000 reward is being offered to catch the perpetrators.
Eleven pelicans have been found on Bolsa Chica State Beach this week with their wings intentionally broken, prompting an investigation by federal wildlife authorities and the offer of a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.
The sole pelican to survive is being cared for at the Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center of Orange County, which put up the reward.
Ten of the birds were less than a year old and were probably feeding in the water, said Lisa Birkle, the Huntington Beach center's assistant wildlife director, adding that residents have reported seeing fishing boats close to shore in recent days.
"The birds targeted are new birds arriving from the Channel Islands," she said. "They are young and inexperienced and don't have a fear of humans. . . . Because they're so hungry, they'll go right up to people."
With ocean temperatures around 70 degrees, small fish that would normally provide food for the birds near the surface have submerged deeper in search of cooler water.
Nine pelicans were found Monday by a Bolsa Chica lifeguard. The two others were found near the same lifeguard tower in subsequent days. Birkle said the injuries were consistent: "Someone is snapping the wings backward."
Because the pelicans were found wet with sand packed into their exposed wounds, it is suspected that they were injured in the water and dragged themselves up on shore.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is investigating.
Case UpdatesA reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the people responsible for breaking the wings of 11 brown pelicans, killing 10 of them, has increased to $20,000, officials said Thursday.
The birds were found Sept. 15-16 at Bolsa Chica State Beach, according to Debbie McGuire, director of the Wetlands & Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach. Seven were dead and four were brought to the center, but three had to be euthanized.
Sept. 19 Video
"The one surviving pelican is doing well," McGuire said. "She is eating well, perching well and her weight is up. She is still not flapping though."
McGuire said earlier that the female bird's shoulder was swollen, which may have stemmed from a dislocation.
A $5,000 reward was initially offered, but it jumped to $20,000, thanks to contributions by several agencies that realized the seriousness of the animal abuse, McGuire said.
"The breaks were horrific," said Lisa Birkle, assistant director of the center. "In my opinion, these injuries appear to be intentional. This does not naturally happen to 11 birds in the span of three days. We have never had this many similar injuries in this short an amount of time, 11 on the same beach."
The agencies that helped pump up the reward were the Wetlands & Wildlife Care Center, Found Animals Foundation, Bolsa Chica Land Trust and International Bird Rescue and Research Center.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is investigating the birds' injuries, McGuire said.
One bird had bone protruding from its skin by three to four inches, Birkle said.
The breaks run in the opposite direction than might be expected if it happened in flight, McGuire said.
The dead birds were all younger and may not necessarily have had a fear of humans, McGuire said, adding that pelicans hatch on the more remote Channel Islands.
The birds, left at sea with broken wings, could not fly. While paddling in, they apparently got tumbled up in the surf, with most drowning, she said.
Anyone with information about the birds' injuries was asked to call Special Agent Ed Newcomer of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at 310-328-1516. | Source: KNBC - Sept 25, 2008
Update posted on Sep 25, 2008 - 9:34PM |
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