If you have ever been close to a heron rookery you know that it is an extremely busy place, with squawking adults feeding equally loud and active chicks. The rookeries usually contain mixed species such as Snowy Egrets, Cattle Egrets, Great Egrets and Black-Crowned Night Herons. Some of these colonies can be found in urban … Read more
Breeding numbers are up, but Brown Pelicans still face challenges From Domoic Acid outbreaks to fishing line and tackle injuries to human cruelty, Brown and White Pelicans have overcome many obstacles in the last 200 years and now face addition conflicts with humans. Life has not been easy since the California Brown Pelican was put … Read more
Dear friends and supporters, We want to share with you some exciting news about a pelican that was spotted last month in Southern California. The Brown Pelican was one of many that International Bird Rescue (IBRRC) rehabilitated in 1990 during the American Trader oil spill in Huntington Beach, CA. This rare and invaluable band encounter … Read more
The brown pelican named “Gigi” that landed and halted traffic in August on the Golden Gate Bridge was released released back to the wild on Friday, September 12. The young bird was rescued and transferred to International Bird Rescue where it has been recuperating for the past several weeks. Watch: Brown Pelican captured on Golden … Read more
After nearly 6 weeks in care, rescued Elegant and Caspian Terns have been returned to the wild. Our rescue story begins in the spring of 2006 as adult Caspian and Elegant terns began nesting on two empty barges anchored in the Long Beach Harbor. The barges quickly became covered with thousands of the beautiful white … Read more
On the morning of September 16th 2002, Carol Frey of Auburn, California went to a local pond to feed the abandoned ducks and geese. Instead of running to greet her as they usually did, they were either trapped on a small island, or sinking, as if they were in quicksand. The entire pond was covered … Read more
Lost pair of Albatrosses creates a frenzy When our rehabilitation manager, Coleen Doucette was awakened at 3AM on March 3, 2001, little did she know what she was getting into. The call came from the Chevron refinery in Richmond. Two really big seagulls had come in on a barge and workers couldn’t shoo them off … Read more
Overview of the Galapagos Oil Spill The spill occurred on January 16, 2001 approximately 870 yards off San Cristobal Island, one of the Galapagos Islands. At least 22 oiled pelicans were returned to the wild. Over 100 animals were affected during the spill. Nearly 200,000 gallons of diesel and bunker crude oil spilled from Ecuadorean … Read more
Helping save 20,000 oiled penguins in Cape Town On June 23, 2000 the damaged bulk ore carrier MV Treasure sank off the coast of South Africa between Dassen and Robben islands, which support the largest and third largest colonies of African Penguins (Spheniscus demersus), worldwide. The worldwide population of African penguins is numbered at less … Read more
On March 26, 1979 a Laysan Albatross was found wandering around the streets of San Francisco unable to fly. The bird was captured and brought to IBRRC in Berkeley, CA. An examination revealed that all of the primary and secondary feathers on both of the birds wings and all of the tail feathers had been … Read more