MidnightWatcher – Prophecy in Motion

“MOSS LANDING (CBS SF) — Wildlife rescuers say large numbers of starving young pelicans are turning up on local beaches right now.

The pelicans appear thin and weak, and are walking up to people, said Rebecca Dmytryk, a spokeswoman for WildRescue, a Moss Landing-based nonprofit.

Dmytryk said the starving young birds, which can be distinguished from adults by their brown heads, are distressing to see but probably part of a normal natural die-off, or ‘survival of the fittest.’

While it’s distressing to see, not all the young birds can or should be saved, she noted.

‘Should we intervene? It’s a tough call!’ Dmytryk said in a written statement. ‘It’s certainly upsetting to see a starving baby pelican on the beach, but are we doing the species a disservice if we take in all the weak ones?’

Resources for bird rescues are limited, and the nearest center, in Cordelia, is already overrun with young pelicans who cost a great deal to feed, Dmytryk said.” Read more.

New York: Dolphin Near Chelsea Piers Starved To Death – “Last month, a lone dolphin was spotted swimming near Chelsea Piers in lower Manhattan; at the time, director of the Riverhead Foundation’s rescue program Kimberly Durham noted that seeing a dolphin close to shore ‘can be an indication that something is not right.’ The dolphin sadly later turned up dead, and now we know why: marine researchers told DNAInfo the dolphin starved to death. ‘We basically found an emaciated dolphin with no signs of food—so the animal had not been eating,’ said Kim Durham, a biologist with the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation. ‘Just an extremely emaciated animal, with not enough food to survive—if it had been eating at all.'” Read more.

Texas: Dozens of Dead Birds Found In Rockport Rookery, Starvation Suspected – “Last Friday a Rockport woman became alarmed when she noticed at least 2 dozen dead birds in a spot next to her workplace on the Highway 35 business route. She contacted Tony Amos with the Animal Rehabilitation Keep to check it out. Of course it’s part of the natural cycle of life you will find the occasional dead egret in a rookery like this but to find over 20 in the same area was a bit concerning… the birds are probably malnourished and he speculates that there could be several reasons for this. The hot and dry summer has taken its toll on the birds feeding area, and has probably dried up the bird’s reserve of fresh water.” Read more.