We work with injured and disabled seabirds to

rectify their misadventures with mankind.

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The Save Our Seabirds philosophy is Don't feed the water birds. We have found that humans have a natural instinct to nurture children, pets and wildlife. Wildlife, and specifically birds, are not pets and shouldn't be treated as such.

When feeding wildlife, you are putting their lives at risk in several ways. Below are some of the problems we have had firsthand concerning the need that people have to feed the birds.

It took three people to remove this fish carcass from the throat of a pelican. The exposed bones pierced its throat and lodged in its neck, wedging it into the bird.

When pelicans and other water birds eat fish, the whole fish dissolves at the proper rate. By the time the meat is dissolved, the bones are soft. This is the natural way water birds consume the fish in their diets. If you feed a cleaned fish body to a water bird, the bones are shallow and exposed in many instances. Serious injury and death can occur after you think you've done a hungry bird a favor!

Please - don't feed fish scraps to the birds!!

An improper diet can cause malnutrition and human health problems such as fat around the heart, liver and kidneys. Feeding birds also exposes their delicate systems to preservatives and dyes, which eventually causes illness or death.

It was a beautiful, quiet, sunny late morning when a call came into the center from a woman named Myra Gale on Monte Cristo, which is part of the island of Tierra Verde (Myra's back yard backs up to the Intercoastal Waterway.) Knowing her birds and their behavior, she recognized a heron swimming to the center of the channel. For those of you who don't know bird behavior, herons are wading birds not swimmers. Their feathers are not waterproof, and if submerged, the bird's feathers eventually become waterlogged, leading to drowning.

When Myra called the center for help, I went over to see what could be done. On my arrival, the bird was no longer visible. As we searched the area, we noticed the heron clinging to a bottom rail of a dock three doors south of Myrrh's yard. We walked the seawall and scooted around a fence to where the bird was hanging on. As I approached him, he jumped back into the water and started to swim away. Reaching over the rail and scooping him up into the net head first, I gently placed him on the grassy area of the yard and carefully removed the net from his toes, legs, wings and head. I couldn't help wondering why he was feeling so disoriented and ill. I wrapped him in a towel for transport back to the center for evaluation.

Questioning why this bird was so lethargic, weak and disoriented, I soon got my answer. In the bottom of the cage, the bird deposited a pile of evenly cut pieces of hot dogs . A well-meaning individual, from their back yard or condo balcony was feeding this heron and I'm sure other birds as well. One of the pieces even had a greenish tint and looked spoiled. Hot Dogs are not a main staple for birds, neither is cheese, chicken necks, deli meats etc. After a few days in rehab, the bird was released.

They lose their natural fear of people.

It was the end of a busy day and I was having supper with my family when a call came in to pick up a pelican that was lying in the middle of the street. On our island of Tierra Verde Fl. there is a county park called Fort De Soto. As you approach the park, there is a bridge where fishers congregate to fish over the rail into Tampa Bay on the east side and the Gulf of Mexico on the west side. There were four men fishing this particular evening, three of them feeding several pelicans that were begging for their catch. The fourth fisherman wasn't as thrilled with having several birds trying to snatch what he had on his line. He was going to take steps to remedy this problem. He very deliberately took the fish off his hook and threw it in the path of a moving truck.

So quickly did the bird jump into the street to scoop up the fish, the man driving the truck didn't have time to stop before he hit the bird and knocked him unconscious. The three other fishermen and the driver of the truck ran to the aid of the bird and pulled him out of the street. The fisherman that did the dirty deed took off before anyone could hold him accountable for what he had done. In the confusion no information was taken and we had no name or license plate number; consequently, we were unable to prosecute him for animal cruelty.

When I got to the scene a very short time later, the bird was still unconscious with a pouch filled with 7 fish. Carefully picking up the unconscious bird, I was amazed that on a quick evaluation, he had no broken bones. Still showing no signs of waking up, I transported him back to the center and did the normal protocol for an impact patient.

While administering tube feedings of fish puree', fluids, medications, and lots of TLC, we cared for the adult male pelican for four days before he finally woke up. Stevie now earns his keep by going on many educational programs at fairs, schools, civic organizations, clubs and association meetings to tell humans how people are impacting wildlife and their environment.

Stevie was with us since March 1994 until his sad passing in 2006. His age was estimated at between 17 and 24 years old. A kind and patient bird, he passed quietly in his sleep. He will be missed.

The picture of Stevie here is a portrait done by artist Christopher Still. The mural, commissioned for the city of St. Petersburg, immortalized our Stevie. If you are in the area or live here, it's a must see.

The Heron and the Chicken Neck - Inter Species Conflict

It was a sunny afternoon when we received a call into the center about a great blue heron that was lying on the ground outside a home where a woman was feeding birds. The report was, an elderly woman was feeding herons, egrets, gulls, and crows outside her front door and the different species were fighting over the pieces of chicken liver, cheese, and chicken necks. She fed these birds every day and had collected quite an audience for her handouts -- food these birds shouldn't eat. The digestive system for birds of these species cannot tolerate the fats, dyes, and preservatives that human food contains, beside the fact that the nutritional value is lacking. Egrets and herons normally feed on fish, small birds, mammals, and snakes in order to keep healthy.

While fighting for the food that was being thrown up into the air, one of the herons was able to snatch a chicken neck away from the feeding frenzy of gulls, egrets, and crows. Successful in getting the "prize," he flew straight into the air and hit the power lines, ultimately crashing to the ground. With the wind knocked out of him and unable to move, he still held on to the chicken neck.

We were called to retrieve this big, beautiful, adult heron. We drove him directly to the veterinarian for x-rays, already knowing what the outcome was going to be. The x-rays confirmed our fears. He had a fractured back that could not be repaired and our only recourse was to put him to sleep. It was a very sad ending to this beautiful bird's life. If left to his own ability to find his food, it never would have happened.

We have many cases we need to tell you about. As we update our site, we will add more cases and pictures of the patients we see and the problems they have because of human impact on them and their environment.

How better can we explain why it is detrimental for the birds or any wildlife to be fed by humans? The best way we know is to tell you about the consequences of feeding in some individual cases that have made an impression on our volunteers and our staff.

Please follow the Save Our Seabirds philosophy:  Don't feed the water birds.

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