Trading Barbs by Rick Chaboudy The caller said that she is from Colorado. She was fishing with her husband at Anclote River Park and there is a bird with three fishing hooks stuck in it. I asked, What kind of bird? She replied Big bird. Thats all I know. I thought, Could it be THAT Big Bird? I have to admit, I was a little disappointed that it wasnt THAT Big Bird. After all the Big Bird shows I was forced to watch with my daughter when she was growing up, the least he could do was give me an autograph or chicken scratch...or something. This big bird happened to be a young Brown Pelican. It is not uncommon for inexperienced Pelicans to hang around fisherman and boats this time of year when the water is colder and fishing is more difficult. After catching the Pelican with a net and then securing the bird for the safety of all involved, the hook removal commenced. First, the hook from the beak was removed. It was the easiest to see and no feathers were in the way. After that, it became a little trickier. The second hook was also easy to see, but getting to the barb was a different story. The feathers had to be parted and then the barb, which prevents the hook from being pulled out, had to be pushed up through the skin to a point that it could be snipped off. Once the barb was removed, the hook was then backed out of the hole in the skin and removed. The third hook was by far the most difficult of all. The difficult part was that the hook was a treble hook (3 hooks). Plus, it was a smaller hook. To remove one, we called on a couple of bystanders to help part the feathers so I could get to the much smaller barbs. I made about seven snips on this treble hook before the Pelican was finally hook-free. ------------- A common characteristic I have noticed with many Pelicans is their ability to realize that they are in need of help and also that they are being helped. This Pelican did not struggle at all. It flinched a couple of times when I was maneuvering the hooks but other than that, it was a perfect patient. The Pelican was calm, relaxed and those big brown eyes seemed to be full of trust as it watched everything we did. Fortunately, none of the hooks were in vital areas, there was no line attached to any of the hooks and there was no damage. One of the hooks still had a shrimp on it indicating that it was a very recent hook-up. The entry points were clean and there was no bleeding. The bird was a good weight and seemed quite healthy so I elected to release him. He flew away with no issues and joined a few Pelicans in the distance. This is a dangerous time for the free-spirited Pelicans who quickly become free-loaders this time of year, especially the all brown, younger ones. If you are a fisherman be careful, dont become a hooker.
Posted on: Sun, 04 Jan 2015 21:35:09 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015