The SPCA for
Monterey County is rescuing pelicans injured by the recent storms in our
area. As of Tuesday, March 9, our Wildlife Rescue and
Rehabilitation Center has rescued 95 pelicans and we expect to rescue
even more pelicans in the next few days.
If anyone in
our
community spots pelicans acting strangely or
in an unusual location, we ask that they please do not approach the
animal. Instead, call The SPCA Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center
at 831-373-2631 x227.
The pelicans had all
lost their waterproofing, they were thin (some were emaciated), many
were hypothermic, and one had a flesh wound on its wing. We
believe they were challenged by the recent storms in our area.
In cases like this, The
SPCA acts as an emergency room by taking in the all injured birds and
working to stabilize and save them. After stabilization, 64 of
the pelicans were transferred to International Bird Rescue Research
Center in Fairfield for further care. In the meantime, our doors
stay open to any injured or orphaned wild animal that needs our help.
You can help:
Report injured wild animals by calling 373-2631 x227 or
donate now to support The SPCA Wildlife
Center!
News Coverage:
Original Story: The SPCA for Monterey County performed an
emergency wildlife rescue on December 17 on El Paso Road in Salinas. The barn owl was tangled in fishing line and unable to fly.
The call originally came in to rescue an owl trapped in a barbed wire
fence, but as you can see from these photos, this is not what SPCA
Wildlife Center Technicians found on arrival to the scene.
The
rescue went smoothly and we
are hopeful that
the barn owl will be able to be
released soon.
Examination at the SPCA Wildlife Center revealed no
fractures or dislocations,
but the owl is favoring that wing so
are closely monitoring the situation.
You can help:
Donate now to support The SPCA Wildlife
Center!
SPCA Rescues Abused Cooper's
Hawk
The
SPCA for Monterey County is offering a $1,000 reward for information
leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for
deliberately and severely injuring a Cooper’s hawk.
On November
11, a sub-adult Cooper’s hawk was found standing in a yard on Cougar Dr.
in Salinas. SPCA Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation staff responded to
the scene, where they discovered that the hawk’s talons, wing feathers,
and tail feathers had been crudely cut. It also appears that the hawk
had been kept in a confined space, as he has large sores on his head and
elbows.
Due to the
mutilation of his wings, the hawk is unable to fly. He is also unable
to hunt or feed himself properly. Sadly, due to the severity of his
injuries, it is possible that the hawk will not recover.
“Wild
animals are not meant to be pets and it is illegal and inhumane to keep
them,” says SPCA Wildlife Center Supervisor Rosanna Leighton. “We are
doing all we can to help him but this is a tragic example of what
happens when you intentionally hurt wildlife.”
Cooper’s
hawks are medium-sized hawks native to our area and they are protected
under the Federal Migratory Bird Act.
SPCA Humane
Officers are investigating the case. If you have any
information, please contact The SPCA at 831-373-2631 or 422-4721 x213 or
report online.
All reports are completely confidential.
You Can Help:
Donate,
Report,
and Forward to a Friend.
On Saturday,
November 7th, an injured golden eagle was found in a field in
Soledad. The SPCA Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center
responded to the scene and brought the eagle back to our center.
An examination revealed that the eagle’s left shoulder is either
dislocated or broken.
Today SPCA Wildlife Staff are
stabilizing the eagle in order to transfer to California Raptor Center
at UC Davis tomorrow for possible specialized surgery.
The SPCA Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center is the only full
service wildlife rehabilitation center serving Monterey County. The
SPCA Wildlife Center’s professional staff operates under permits from
the California Department of Fish & Game and rescues over 2,600 wild
animals every year. Your support is extremely important
to us, as we do not receive funding from any federal, state or local
government agency.
Update from California
Raptor Center: Tests reveal that the golden eagle has a broken
collarbone and coracoid in his left wing. He is wrapped & being
monitored closely.
Badger Rescued and Released
by SPCA Wildlife Center
On June 25, The SPCA
Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center received a call about a badger
stuck in a five foot deep sewer pipe in Fort Ord. A worker was
passing by the area, looked into the manhole (which was uncovered) and
saw the trapped badger. Or, as he put it, "I glanced into the hole
and something was staring at me."
He contacted The SPCA Wildlife Center, who
responded to the scene. Wildlife rescuers trapped the smelly, wet
badger and moved him to safety. An examination showed that the
badger was unharmed.
The badger was released into suitable
territory nearby and the manhole was covered for the safety of future
animals.
SPCA
Wildlife Center Rescues Eight Baby Chipmunks Chipmunks Traveled from Tahoe City in
RV bound for Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
UPDATE: Release Photos!
The
SPCA for Monterey County’s Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center is
caring for eight baby chipmunks who accidentally hitched a ride from
Tahoe City to Monterey.
The
baby chipmunks, approximately two weeks old, were nesting in a piece of
carpet in a motor home owned by brothers John and Mike Celauss. John
and Mike had driven from Tahoe City to Monterey on Thursday to race
their D-Sports Racer in this weekend’s SCCA Regional Series at Mazda
Raceway Laguna Seca. When Mike pulled the piece of carpet out of the
motor home that evening, the chipmunks were dislodged from their nest
and scattered.
“The little guys
ran everywhere,” said John Celauss. “Everyone was very helpful – it was
tough race car guys dropping everything to chase chipmunk babies. We’ve
been coming down here for many years, so we knew we could call The SPCA
to the rescue.”
The
brothers placed the chipmunks in a box with blankets and called The SPCA
first thing the next morning. The chipmunks are now in an incubator at
The SPCA Wildlife Center and have been feeding well. They will be cared
for at The SPCA Wildlife Center until mature, when they will be released
back in Tahoe.
“We
are very happy that John and Mike knew to call us,” says Rosanna
Leighton, SPCA Wildlife Center Supervisor. “The chipmunks are doing well
after their unfortunate road trip and our skilled technicians will work
carefully with them to nurse them to adulthood.”
UPDATE: A
photo of the rescued owls taken a month after they were placed back in
their nest:
On April 5, an engineer
with the Marina Fire Department thought
he noticed a ball of “mold” on the ground under a tree. Upon further
investigation, he found that the “mold” was actually two baby Great
Horned Owls who had fallen out of their nest. They contacted The SPCA
Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center, who responded to the scene.
SPCA Wildlife Technicians examined the nestlings, which were in good
health and not injured by the fall. Since it is always best to keep
wild animals in the wild whenever possible, we created a make-shift nest
out of a laundry basket and attached it securely to the tree.
Ad adult
owl had been attempting to feed the nestlings on the ground, and greeted
the nestlings in their new and improved nest after we left the scene.
The SPCA Wildlife Rescue and
Rehabilitation Center is the only full service wildlife rehabilitation
center serving Monterey County. We operate under permits from the
California Department of Fish and Game and the United States Fish and
Wildlife Service.
Your support is extremely important to
us, as we do not receive funding from any federal, state or local
government agency.
Injured Bald Eagle Recovering at SPCA Wildlife Center
On
Sunday, February 1st, an adult female Bald Eagle was found
entangled in a wire fence on Fort Hunter Liggett in Monterey County.
After initially being treated at Pacific Wildlife Care in Morro Bay,
the eagle has now been transferred to The SPCA for Monterey County’s
Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center. The eagle, known as 5M, has
deep wounds at the base of each of her wings from struggling with the
fence. X-rays do not show broken bones, but her left wing is drooping.
The eagle’s rehabilitation is being followed
closely by Ventana Wildlife Society, which has a vested interest in her
recovery: fifteen years ago, they released her in Big Sur as a young
eaglet as part of a reintroduction effort.
"I
was personally involved with the release of 5M when I was working as a
field biologist for Ventana Wildlife Society", says Executive Director
Kelly Sorenson. "It is just an an amazing feeling to know that this
eagle survived all these years. I just hope she can once again fly
free. The story of eagle 5M is extraordinary and one that shows just
how successful a reintroduction effort in combination with a wildlife
rehabilitation program can work well together.”
Currently, The SPCA Wildlife Center is feeding the eagle by tongs and
giving her intramuscular antibiotics twice daily. They have also been
keeping her hydrated with subcutaneous fluids.
“It’s unfortunate to see such a magnificent animal injured like this,”
says Rosanna Leighton, SPCA Wildlife Center Supervisor. “Like all the
animals we rescue, we are going to do what is best for her and we hope
to get her back out into the wild where she belongs.”
Since The SPCA does not currently have access to the best flight cage
for her, bald eagle 5M was transferred to a wildlife rescue facility in
Davis, CA, on 2/17. Sadly she was later euthanized due to the
severity of her injuries.
SPCA Rescues Sick
Pelicans on Central Coast
The
SPCA Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center rescued
40 Brown Pelicans during the just two weeks in January 2009. The pelicans appear cold,
weak, thin, and dehydrated. If you see an injured pelican, please
contact us immediately at 831-373-2631 x227.
The SPCA Wildlife Center is
the only full service wildlife rehabilitation center serving Monterey
County, rescuing over 2,000 animals every year.
How You Can
Help:
The SPCA is seeking
donations to cover the cost of rescue and
care for the pelicans and all other injured and orphaned wild animals in
our Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center. The SPCA is also
seeking
volunteers to help care for wild animals
in need. Please
contact us
for more information.
Over 150 Northern
Fulmars Rescued from Local Beaches
The
SPCA for Monterey County rescued over 150 Northern Fulmars from Monterey
County beaches on Tuesday, November 20, 2007. The majority of the birds
were found on Marina State Beach.
Wildlife staff and
volunteers worked late into the night and through Thanksgiving warming,
hydrating, and feeding the rescued birds. When they were rescued,
the birds were wet and exhibiting signs of hypothermia. At this
point, the birds appear to be emaciated and scientists believe that the
problem might be associated with red tide.
The fulmars have now been
transferred to the Marine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center
in Santa Cruz. The SPCA Wildlife Center is continuing to assist in
the care of the fulmars in Santa Cruz while still rescuing and
rehabilitating other native wildlife in our community. The fulmars
are expected to be released at the end of November.
The SPCA is seeking
donations to cover the cost of rescue and
care for the fulmars and all other injured and orphaned wild animals in
our Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center. The SPCA is also
seeking
volunteers to help care for wild animals
in need. Please
contact us
for more information.
WILDLIFE SUCCESS STORIES
Great Horned Owl
Nestlings
The SPCA for Monterey County rescued two Great
Horned Owl nestlings that fell from their nest after their tree was
cut down in an industrial park just off of Highway 218 in Del Rey
Oaks. SPCA Wildlife Rescue hydrated and fed the nestlings and
returned them to the area in a makeshift nest affixed to the largest
tree close to the original nesting site.
Wildife
Supervisor Sue Campbell watched the nest to ensure the parents would
find and care for the nestlings. At 8:00 that night, one parent
stopped nearby
with food but was unable to locate the nestlings. SPCA Wildlife
Staff checked and hydrated and fed the nestlings again the next
morning. Sunday morning, after 48 hours as orphans, the nestlings
were finally reunited with their parents.
In this case,
The SPCA for Monterey County was successful in reuniting the baby
owls with their parents. But every year, The SPCA receives baby
squirrels and birds that have been injured or orphaned by ill-timed
and often illegal tree pruning.
Federal law
requires that bird nests not be disturbed until eggs hatch and the
babies leave the nest. If you absolutely need to prune a tree for
safety reasons, carefully check the area for squirrel and bird nests
first. Squirrels nest twice a year from February to May, then again
from July to September. If you find a nest with eggs or babies,
moving or destroying the nest will severely hurt the babies' chance
of survival.
If
you find a baby bird or fledgling that is not obviously injured or
orphaned, please call the professional wildlife rescue and
rehabilitation staff at The SPCA for advice before capturing and
bringing them to The SPCA as capture might be unnecessary.
Ross's Goose Rescue
and Release
This Ross's Goose was
found on Asilomar
State Beach and brought to the ranger’s office by concerned
citizens. The ranger put the freezing bird in a box and placed in
front of the wall heater. The goose was picked up by SPCA Wildlife
Center Supervisor Sue Campbell, who drove it back to The SPCA with
her car heater up all the way. The goose did not have a registered
temperature for two hours after arrival and the first temp was
extremely low at 95.2. The bird was hypothermic and dehydrated. We
warmed it in an incubator and blew dry its wet feathers. The bird
was hydrated with warmed fluids given subcutaneously and tube fed.
After
recovery, the Ross's Goose was transported to the Merced National
Wildlife refuge for release on December 20th. The rehabilitated
goose quickly joined a large flock, blending in immediately (photo
below).
The SPCA for
Monterey County is rescuing pelicans injured by the recent storms in our
area. As of Tuesday, March 9, our Wildlife Rescue and
Rehabilitation Center has rescued 95 pelicans and we expect to rescue
even more pelicans in the next few days. 
The
SPCA for Monterey County is offering a $1,000 reward for information
leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for
deliberately and severely injuring a Cooper’s hawk. 
Sores
on the hawk's head, most likely from being kept in a confined area.
The
hawk's talons were also cut. Hawks use their talons to hunt and
eat, so he cannot survive in the wild.
A
view of the hawk's tail feathers, which has also been cut.
Cooper's Hawks should have long tail feathers (
On Saturday,
November 7th, an injured golden eagle was found in a field in
Soledad. The SPCA Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center
responded to the scene and brought the eagle back to our center.
An examination revealed that the eagle’s left shoulder is either
dislocated or broken.
On June 25, The SPCA
Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center received a call about a badger
stuck in a five foot deep sewer pipe in Fort Ord. A worker was
passing by the area, looked into the manhole (which was uncovered) and
saw the trapped badger. Or, as he put it, "I glanced into the hole
and something was staring at me."
“The little guys
ran everywhere,” said John Celauss. “Everyone was very helpful – it was
tough race car guys dropping everything to chase chipmunk babies. We’ve
been coming down here for many years, so we knew we could call The SPCA
to the rescue.”
On
Sunday, February 1st, an adult female Bald Eagle was found
entangled in a wire fence on Fort Hunter Liggett in Monterey County.
After initially being treated at Pacific Wildlife Care in Morro Bay,
the eagle has now been transferred to The SPCA for Monterey County’s
Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center. The eagle, known as 5M, has
deep wounds at the base of each of her wings from struggling with the
fence. X-rays do not show broken bones, but her left wing is drooping.
The
SPCA for Monterey County rescued over 150 Northern Fulmars from Monterey
County beaches on Tuesday, November 20, 2007. The majority of the birds
were found on Marina State Beach. 
The SPCA for Monterey County rescued two Great
Horned Owl nestlings that fell from their nest after their tree was
cut down in an industrial park just off of Highway 218 in Del Rey
Oaks. SPCA Wildlife Rescue hydrated and fed the nestlings and
returned them to the area in a makeshift nest affixed to the largest
tree close to the original nesting site. 
with food but was unable to locate the nestlings. SPCA Wildlife
Staff checked and hydrated and fed the nestlings again the next
morning. Sunday morning, after 48 hours as orphans, the nestlings
were finally reunited with their parents.
After
recovery, the Ross's Goose was transported to the Merced National
Wildlife refuge for release on December 20th. The rehabilitated
goose quickly joined a large flock, blending in immediately (photo
below).
