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Seabird found Inland!
Better let Mona tell this story also ! ! !
I always wonder what each day might bring, as it seems to get more and more bizarre sometimes.
With the Roadrunner almost on its way back to Arizona, I had another unbelievable visitor arrive at Back To The Wild! This time of year, you never know what to expect with migrations in full swing, so when I get a call about a duck or goose, I pretty much expect anything. They usually turn out to be all types of Mergansers, Grebes, Gallinules, Ruddy Ducks, Loons, etc.
I had just taken in a Loon on Dec. 3 - the usual situation where she was stranded on land. No injuries - hurrah! - and just the need to check her over for any problems and some observation - then a great release back out to Lake Erie. Loons feet are located clear to the rear of the body, and they simply cannot navigate on land. They mistake wet asphalt, parking lots, interstates etc. for bodies of water and literally crash land. It usually happens when they become disoriented in stormy or foggy weather and they lose sight of the shoreline.
The call came from Seneca County on December 4th. The caller said they had a Cormorant, but described something quite different. After more description, we felt it might be another Loon. When it arrived, it looked very much like a Loon except for the plumage and a slightly different beak shape and it just was not a Loon. It was in terrible condition - and I knew I couldn't save it. I paged through all my fieldguides and all I could come up with was a Northern Gannet. Couldn't be for they're not found in this area!
Unfortunately, it died two hours after arriving. Shortly after, Vic Fazio (outstanding ornithologist and publisher of much literature and data on every kind of statistical information on the status of breeding birds in Ohio and other areas in the U.S.) came by to attend a program I was giving to a group of ornithology students from Heidelberg College. I quickly snatched him away, eager to have him help identify the bird in my freezer. His exact words were - "Oh my God, Oh my God, Oh my God - This is a Northern Gannet!"
He said there have only been three actual specimens found in the last century in Ohio. Unbelievable. He made me feel alot better, when he explained they have no chance at all of survival once they are out of their salt water environment and on freshwater lakes. They simply are built to process salt secretions through nasal, eye and other biological conditions and their physiology won't allow them to handle fresh water diets, etc. Their chances of surviving past five days is almost impossible.
These are large sea birds who nest on coastal cliffs and winter at sea. Many are following the coast from the St. Lawrence Seaway down to the Chesapeake Bay and on even to the tip of Florida and occasionally into the Gulf of Mexico during winter months. This year has been noted as an extraordinary invasion of them into many areas outside their normal migration routes. Not as good of an ending as the Roadrunner story, but definitely another exciting touch with one of nature's spectacular creatures. At least she will end up in a Museum situation, to be a source of learning and appreciation by many. Mark Shieldcastle, ODNR, Div. of Wildlife, Ohio Biologist will have her taxidermied and placed on display at the Sportsman Migratory Bird Center at Magee Marsh in Oak Harbor.
What a neat experience and privilege to have been allowed to be touched, temporarily, by the life of another incredible wild creature! Another example that says we rehabbers get way more out of this profession than what we are able to give!
This year has also brought a Gray-cheeked Thrush, a Phildelphia Vireo, and a Roadrunner to the center, plus a wide array of species that totaled almost 1,800 individual animals! In January of 2002, we released a fully recovered Snowy Owl from the observation tower at Magee Marsh also. You just never know what each day will bring - but for me, nothing can be more fulfilling than to have the privilege to play a role in helping to return a wild creature back into the wild! When people ask a rehabber what a typical day is like - well, since Back To The Wild began, there just hasn't been a typical day! Every day brings something different and interesting and an opportunity for me to learn a little more about our natural world! Take care and to all you wonderful supporters of Back To The Wild and other centers - we thank you and need you - You make all the difference and allow us to continue to exist!
Sincerely, Mona Rutger
BACK TO THE WILD wildlife rehabilitation center in Castalia, Ohio.
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This was last modified on January 19, 2003.
