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Mystery illness sickens hundreds of West Coast pelicans

January 5th, 2009, 7:10 pm · 17 Comments · posted by Pat Brennan, green living, environment editor

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Pelicans suffering from a so-far mysterious malady are crashing into cars and boats, wandering roadways and turning up dead by the hundreds across the West Coast, from southern Oregon to Baja, Mexico, bird rescue workers say.

Weak, disoriented birds are huddling in people’s yards or being struck by cars. More than 100 of the birds have been rescued along the California coast, according to the International Bird Rescue Research Center in San Pedro.

Hundreds of birds, disoriented or dead, have been observed across the West Coast.

“One pelican actually hit a car in Los Angeles,” said Rebecca Dmytryk of Wildrescue, a bird rescue operation. “One pelican hit a boat in Monterey.” (California brown pelican shown above; photo by Mark Rightmire.)

In Orange County, an estimated 25 to 30 birds have been treated at the Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach over the past three weeks.

Many of the birds die of the illness; some recover and are released.

“We did have someone observe a pelican try to land on the ledge of a building,” said Debbie McGuire, wildlife director at the center. “And then it fell to its death.”

Another was reported on the 405 freeway, but she had no further information about the bird.

While some of the symptoms resemble those associated with domoic acid poisoning — a ocean toxin that sometimes affects sea birds and mammals — other symptoms do not; so far, domoic acid also apparently has not been found in significant amounts offshore, rescuers said, although more tests are needed.

“These birds are on the freeway, getting run over,” said Jay Holcomb, executive director of the rescue center in San Pedro. “A bunch we’ve seen have been hit. They’ve been landing on yards five miles inland. When some of the people have captured them in parking lots, they just sit in the corner. They just go pick them up.”

The pelicans’ behavior was “weird,” Holcomb said.

“We don’t see them shaking or wobbling or falling down,” symptoms typically seen with domoic acid poisoning, he said. “These birds just act like they’re out of it.”

Eight of the troubled birds were being cared for Tuesday at the care center in Huntington Beach.

“They’re coming in very weak, very dehydrated, emaciated,” said veterinarian Erin Hogan said. “One came in just laying down, still breathing.”

Many of the birds also show signs of swelling on their feet.

Rescuers are wondering whether the illness is caused by a virus, or even by contaminants washed into the ocean after recent fires.

Heather Nevill, a veterinarian tracking the pelican problem for the International Bird Rescue Research Center, said the malady could be anything from disease to a suite of harmful environmental conditions converging on the birds all at once.

“Maybe the weather has been particularly difficult on them,” Nevill said. “Maybe the fish stocks are particularly low. It might be more than one thing, all coming together at once.”

The group is working with California Fish and Game wildlife veterinarian Pamela Swift, who said she is trying to obtain a fresh carcasses so samples can be sent laboratories for analysis. Results could come by next week.

Every year, pelicans turn up at rescue centers with a variety of problems, and occasional disoriented birds are not unusual, the rescuers said.

Young pelicans also often turn up starving or debilitated every season.

But the pelicans appearing along California shores are adult birds, and the sheer number of them is highly unusual, rescuers and veterinarians said.

“This year, quite a few adult birds are coming in starving,” Nevill said. “That’s not typical.”

Dmytryk put the situation in starker terms.

“I’ve been rescuing wildlife on the California coast since 1981,” she said. “And I’ve never seen anything like this.”

Anyone who finds a dead pelican is asked to call the toll-free California Wildlife Hotline, 866-WILD-911. If you see a sick or injured bird, call a local rescue center such as the Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center at 714-374-5587.

Adult California brown pelicans are identifiable by their white heads.

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     17 Comments

    • matt says:
      January 5, 2009 at 8:02 pm

      wow that’s so funny

    • David says:
      January 5, 2009 at 10:48 pm

      I saw two Pelicans with thesesymptoms in Big Sur and Santa Cruz. I was amused originally, took pictures, but now feel guilty…

    • Think says:
      January 6, 2009 at 12:09 am

      How about cleaning up the freaking ocean already? I guess no one really cares how polluted our ocean really is. Surfers get sick, the animals in and out of the ocean are getting sick. There are beach closures due to the dirty water……when will it finally become a priority?

    • SurfCity says:
      January 6, 2009 at 4:15 am

      help them!

    • Janet says:
      January 6, 2009 at 7:26 am

      We saw 20+ Pelicans just wondering around and huddling and shaking on Redondo Beach pier……I thought it was an odd site to see so many of them on the pier. Some did not look well, while other just roamed around while people posed for pictures with them. I was surprised they did not try to run or fly away.

      I hope someone figures out how to help them..

    • John S. says:
      January 6, 2009 at 8:51 am

      I saw an egret pecking at a pelican in the SA river.

    • bobbyc says:
      January 6, 2009 at 9:29 am

      I wouldn’t take this all that lightly, as I fear that with the Earth’s climate changing faster and faster each year, we will see more odd problems, like this, affecting our local ocean creatures.

      Furthermore, it could very well start effecting the very food we eat ourselves, as these pelicans could be the canneries in our coalmine.
      Remember, they eat many of the same fish that we consume!

    • Lisa says:
      January 6, 2009 at 10:02 am

      My family and I saw a dead pelican on the tide pool rocks at Shaw’s Cove just last weekend. It was a sad thing to see. Right next to it was a dead rat, which I saw first. As I was recoiling from the site of the rat, I almost stepped on the poor dead pelican. Yikes. One thing to note, their beaks are incredibly long up close. As a ocean lover and surfer, I really hope that we see a turnaround in ocean pollution.

    • SUP-paddler says:
      January 6, 2009 at 10:18 am

      I paddle along the jetty in Dana Point Harbor daily. Usually I only see perhaps one dead bird in the water, but on Sunday there were 12-15 dead birds along the lenth of the breakwater. I thought it was strange, but now it makes sense….thanks for the article ocr.

    • bhill says:
      January 6, 2009 at 10:31 am

      Could this be bird flu?

    • Frank Coleman says:
      January 6, 2009 at 10:41 am

      So sad. I’m in San Diego and I just saw a pelican walking in the street looking all out of it. Cars were swerving out of the way to avoid it. Sad.

    • Jim Jones says:
      January 6, 2009 at 11:23 am

      If you see Pelican in distress please help. I would start with contacting the wetlands wildlife center http://www.wwccoc.org/

      714.374.5587

      If it were me I would do whatever I had to in order to get it transported to the Wetlands Wildlife center. Not sure if they recommend you transport the animal yourself. I would start by calling them first.

    • Mike says:
      January 6, 2009 at 2:58 pm

      If you live between Santa Monica and the Ventura County line, and witness a pelican (or other wildlife) in distress, please immediately contact the California Wildlife Center at 310-458-WILD.

    • matt says:
      January 6, 2009 at 3:10 pm

      This is due to the heavy chemtrailing…full stop

    • matt says:
      January 6, 2009 at 3:21 pm

      Simply look up in the skies, do you really think those are clouds made by nature? The arisol spraying by large tankers must stop!

    • kelnoelle says:
      January 6, 2009 at 3:43 pm

      Weren’t there a bunch of pelicans who were found with their wings broken a few months ago? Perhaps this all is the work of an incredibly inhumane person?

    • LINDA says:
      January 9, 2009 at 4:18 pm

      If anyone see’s an injured or hurt pelican or sea bird South of Newport beach Contact Pacific Wildlife 949 831 1178 or go to our website http://www.pacificwildlife.org