MIAMI (WSVN) - A pelican is on the mend after it was found in bad shape at Haulover Inlet.
Two Miami-Dade firefighters found the injured pelican hung up on the rocks of Haulover Inlet, Tuesday.
They brought the injured bird to the Pelican Harbor Seabird Station Wildlife Rescue Hospital in Miami.
“It was unable to fly, therefore unable to fish and find food, so it would have definitely not have made it out there in the wild if it weren’t for these two officers,” said Hannah McDougall, communications director for the hospital.
The coastal bird came in with a fishing line and hooks lodged in its wing and leg.
“We’ve had our clinic and veterinary staff. They were able to very carefully remove the hooks,” said McDougall. “There’s three hooks on each treble, so in total, essentially six hooks caught in this bird, so it’s a very delicate process, but we were able to extract the hooks.”
Wednesday morning, rehabilitation staff cleaned the wounds, administered antibiotics and gave the pelican a laser treatment for the pain.
McDougall said these line-in-hook injuries are fairly common and typically unintentional.
“Fishermen will often cast out these lures. It might get caught in a tree; it might get caught on the bird itself,” said McDougall.
She said keeping these coastal birds healthy and free of injury helps maintain the balance of South Florida’s ecosystem.
“In the case that you do ever accidentally hook a bird, we say never cut the line, always to gently reel the bird in,” said McDougall.
In such a situation, people are urged to call the Pelican Harbor Seabird Station for help.
The pelican is expected to make a full recovery.
“We’re hoping within a month to get this guy back out into the wild,” said McDougall.
The pelican is expected to remain in the hospital for several months deoending on how it heals.
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