Pelican looking to rebound from fish hook injury

A pelican is being nursed back to health after suffering a couple of injuries.

“I reached underneath and then saw that there were a couple of lures,” Pelee Island resident Larry Bailey described.

He and two others were involved in the rescue of a pelican off Pelee Island last Sunday. Bailey said the fish line was wrapped from the wing to the right leg.

“And then from the right leg the fishing line was wrapped around the other leg very tight,” Bailey said.

The pelican was later cut free and brought to shore. Bailey said this is not a unique situation especially in recent years as tournament fishing increases.

“That's how I was raised like looking after birds even from fishing nets that break apart in the winter,” he said.

Photographer Steve Biro has noticed an increase in the pelican population in the past few years.

“They're still a pretty rare sighting,” Biro said. “We have been seeing them more. I saw them quite a bit at Holiday Beach this year. There was quite a few sighting.”

Although he has not seen pelicans wrapped up in fishing line he has seen many animals fall victim to man's garbage.

“Even litter. They can choke on things like cigarette butts and what have you. Nature can be very fragile,” he said.

At Ojibway Park, workers manage litter weekly walking the trails to pick up coffee cups, cigarette butts and other debris on a weekly basis.

“Wildlife can often confuse particularly small litter items with their food or they inadvertently digest those items while foraging for food,” explained naturalist Kare Alexander.

Or they can become entangled like the pelican.

“He's walking around more,” said Jen Dalley, wildlife coordinator at Wings Wildlife Rehab Centre. “He's still being hand fed. His leg is still swollen. Still has a swollen wrist joint, so it's a day by day with him.

Dalley said the joint in the right wing is wounded, and they are waiting for the swelling to go down and will assess the joint at that time.

Her message to people is simple.

“Be really cautious of what you do,” he said.