International Bird Rescue teams up with the Port of Long Beach!

Today, we’re excited to announce a new partnership with our friends at the Port of Long Beach to protect and honor the birds of our beloved coastal ecoystems! As part of this collaboration, the Port has committed $20,000 in 2014 to the care of our bird patients!

Here’s the backstory on this partnership:

A few months ago, the Port stepped forward to help us care for Pink the Pelican, a California Brown Pelican found in Long Beach with his pouch mutilated from ear to ear. News outlets nicknamed the bird “Pink” for his temporary leg band during the bird’s stay at our wildlife center in nearby San Pedro.

The perpetrators of this animal cruelty act have yet to be found. But thanks in part to The Port of Long Beach and its Green Port Policy, we were successful in giving Pink a second chance out in the wild.

So in the spirit of Pink, we’ve teamed up with the Port to bring you more stories of seabirds and shorebirds that are harmed by the human environment, yet receive expert treatment by our animal care staff. Each featured bird is symbolically “adopted” by our Port friends, who will support the animal from intake to joyful release.

This month’s featured patient: An orphaned American Avocet.

Long-legged and often found in fresh and saltwater wetlands, the American Avocet is instantly recognized by its distinctive upturned bill that the bird uses in a sweeping motion to catch small aquatic prey in shallow water and mudflats.

This avocet was brought to us as an orphan after it was found abandoned in an industrial area. Our staff has raised the baby bird from incubator to outdoor aviary, where this avocet currently is located.

American Avocets depend on some of Southern California’s last remaining wetlands, including the nearby Ballona Creek and Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in Huntington Beach.

Tomorrow, we’ll be showing you an up-close-and-personal look at this bird during a routine exam by the wildlife rehabilitation team.

If you’d like to “adopt” your own animal, there are many to choose from at many different levels of support. Learn more by clicking here.