Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network releases rescued cormorant sea birds back into wild
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - It’s the moment they’ve been waiting for at Goleta Beach.
“It’s really exciting to see these guys released cause we worked really really hard to get cormorants to the point where we can actually get them able to be released," said hospital manager Patrick Hogan of the Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network.
After weeks of treatment, wildlife team brought the two cormorants to full recovery.
But it wasn’t easy by any stretch.
"They’re very special because we do not often get cormorants that we can actually rehabilitate to release … so they’re very difficult to successfully rehabilitate to the point where they’re able to be released in the wild," said director of veterinary services Rebecca Aldoretta of the Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network.
Experts at the wildlife center say the Two cormorants arrived weak, emaciated, and dehydrated about a month ago.
"Once they come in they’re usually in a pretty bad state so These birds really needed fluid hydration and good in order to survive," said communications director Lauren Gonzales of the Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network.
Experts at the wildlife center said one of the hardest parts about treating cormorants is they can be very aggressive.
"And they don’t eat on their own so often times we have to tube feed them multiple times a day. They need a lot of fluids a lot of anti-parasite medications and things like that because they’re very sick when they come in," said Hogan.
So to bring not one, but two of these birds back to health, was astonishing for the team, and perhaps for the sea birds too.
"Getting them better getting them fat again seeing them you know kind of like play in the water and swim and work on their waterproofing and diving was just really enriching to see in rehabilitation but the ultimate goal was seeing them being released in the end," said Hogan.
The wildlife center is currently treating more than 100 patients of all different species.
