Storks rescue has recently become a top topic on social networks and mass media. Informational agencies and TV channels inform that storks have started to massively return from the south to Ukraine, where, due to the abnormal weather conditions, they appear on the verge of death from hunger and cold. “Storks returned at the wrong time… Storks and the spring passed by each other… Let’s rescue the birds!” people write on the public animal protection and personal pages. In order to do this as much correctly as possible and not to do much harm to the birds, the Centre for Wild, Exotic and Domestic Animals Rescue “Feldman Ecopark Good Home” shares the information provided by the experts – a famous Kharkiv’s wildlife journalist Andrii Hapchenko and a Candidate of Sciences (Biology) from Odesa Serhii Kurochkin.
“We see numerous massages about the flocks of storks found in trouble in Lviv, Cherkassy and Odesa regions, as well as on the borders of Poltava and Kharkiv regions. We are expecting the same situation in Kharkiv and Dnipro regions, so it is necessary to be ready for this,” Andrii Hapchenko told. “The situation itself is not unique. This happens approximately once every 10 years, although may be not in these significant scales: the migratory birds return after spending winter in the south, start to make couples, and suddenly they face sharp frost. The animals, which are already weakened with long flights, experience the absence of food, as the water bodies – its main source – are covered with ice. Hanger is their main enemy, although the feathers frozen together (after being exposed to the rain, sleet and then frost) may be also fatal. Of course, the nature took care about the survival of the species, and the strong reproductive birds will survive this short and cold anomaly. Nevertheless, it is inhumane to leave our feathered friends to the mercy of fate.”
We found out about the details of the cases, when it is really necessary to rescue the birds, which failed to meet the spring, and how to do this properly, from the member of the Tuzly Lagoons National Nature Park, Candidate of Sciences (Biology) Serhii Kurochkin. His recommendations are below:
“If you see the storks standing somewhere, there is no need to run immediately and rescue them. Watch them at a distance approaching them slowly and gradually. And it is better to do this not directly, but on a long spiral path. If the birds start to demonstrate the signs of anxiety – to lift their heads, to look around – then, perhaps, nothing is so bad with them taking the situation into account. The matter is only in food and safety.
Food. Storks eat animal food. This means that bread, groats, and vagetables won’t do. Chicken necks, small fish, or maybe meat or waste meat – but only cut into small pieces of a matchbox size. This way, the birds will be able to swallow and digest the food. Please, keep in mind that this bird may attract the predators. It is better to feed storks early in the morning for the bird to have time to digest food before the evening, and for there to stay nothing in the crop. Otherwise, the food may be frozen, as there is no fat streak in the crop.
Bedding. It would be better for the bird not to stand in a snowdrift. There is the risk of frostbite of the legs. Everything from hay to straw and to agricultural wastes will be good for the bedding.
Feeding. You should not to throw anything anywhere. Slowly, looking down, approach the bird to the comfortable for it distance and lay out the food. They are not silly, and will understand everything.
Exhausted birds. It is seen by their behaviour and weight, if the bird is taken in arms. In this case, it will seem weightless, and the keel bone protrudes badly. This bird is doomed in the wild; however, people can try to rescue it. It is not necessary to fill the crop with food. It is better to give a bit of warm water and feed a bird a little. And it is necessary to ensure comfortable conditions: a warm place and absence of stress. It is better to feed it with small helpings but frequently. The water must be always available. It would be better if the premises were constantly illuminated, for a bird to be able to eat when it becomes possible. It is good when the food is fresh, as it is the most nutrient.
If there are rings on the legs of storks, pay attention to this. Storks are ringed in our countries and abroad. It is necessary to take a correct photo of a ring. All letters and numbers should be readable. Then, this information must be provided to the specialists. The ring should not be removed.
Stork is a beautiful bird. A lot of legends and popular beliefs are connected with it. And everything just gets better when you hear their bill-clattering from the nest. So, let’s help them wait till the real spring. After all, baby delivery job is waiting for them:)”
The Centre for Wild, Exotic and Domestic Animals Rescue “Feldman Ecopark Good Home” reminds that the hot line 0-800-302-303 is active every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m..
