Home / Environment / Barrie Rescue: Cormorant Freed from Hooks, Wire
Barrie Rescue: Cormorant Freed from Hooks, Wire
21 Sep
Summary
- Cormorant rescued from fishing wire and hooks near Centennial Beach.
- Rescue was challenging due to cormorants' diving nature and habitat.
- The rescued bird was taken to a wildlife veterinarian for treatment.
A cormorant faced a perilous situation over the weekend, becoming entangled in fishing wire and hooks near Barrie's Centennial Beach. Simcoe County Emergency Animal Response (SCEAR) received numerous calls regarding the distressed bird. The rescue operation, led by Kurt Vondercrone, executive director of SCEAR, proved difficult as cormorants are primarily aquatic and challenging to approach.
Volunteers were eventually able to safely contain the bird after it landed on a rock, a stroke of luck according to Vondercrone. The cormorant was then transported to a wildlife veterinarian for the urgent removal of the fishing wire and hooks. Cormorants, native to Ontario, are medium to large aquatic birds known for their dark plumage and often a distinctive facial patch.
Vondercrone emphasized SCEAR's commitment to rescuing all wildlife, noting that while rare, a rescue may be aborted if the animal experiences extreme stress, a condition known as capture myopathy. Each rescue is carefully assessed based on the animal's condition and potential suffering.
