Mountainaire Avian Rescue Society
Mountainaire Avian Rescue Society
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MARS 6 GULLS by Sandy Fairfield Our sea shores would not be the same without the plaintive cry of the Seagull as it wheels overhead. They are great birds to watch with graceful flight, and a huge variety of flight maneuvers, sounds and social behavior. You may be surprised to know that there is no such species as a "Seagull", in fact there are forty three species of Gulls world-wide, eleven of these live or are seasonal visitors to B.C. The largest and most common is the Glaucous-winged Gull, followed by the crow-sized Thayer’s and Herring Gulls, and the falcon-sized Mew Gull. Gulls are equally at home on inland lakes, rivers, farmland, and can be seen in most cities (especially local garbage dumps where they gather in the thousands). It is hard to believe that Gulls suffered a drastic decline in the early nineteenth century, when their feathers were in great demand by the fashion trade. Although many people view them as a nuisance our sea shores would be far from pristine without them. Often referred to as "garbage collectors", they scavenge on fish carcasses and other rotting or decaying material. This is very evident after salmon spawning along the Puntledge River. A walk beside the Courtenay Air Park, is a great place to watch their feeding behavior. The Californian Gull is certainly far from being considered a nuisance, having been honored as the State bird of Utah. In 1848 Utah was besieged with a plague of crickets which were devouring crops, showing their feeding adaptability the Gulls devoured the crickets to the eternal gratitude of the Mormons. Gulls are opportunistic feeders eating whatever is available and have learned the same trick as crows, dropping shellfish from a height to open it. Unless you are an avid birder, and have binoculars and a bird book, it is very difficult to identify one Gull from another. Up close the adults are quite different, varying in size, leg coloration which can be yellow, black or varying shades of red, length and shape of bills, plumage color and wing markings. As juveniles they are very difficult to tell apart as they often have mottled coloration and their legs, feet and bills’ a muddy color far from their final hue. Gulls are one of the most frequent visitors to M.A.R.S and arrive with many different injuries. Many of these injuries are sustained on impact with vehicles as they scavenge food from the roads, others prominent causes are gunshot wounds and fishing line entanglement. We have recently received entangled Gulls from the Condensory Bridge area and would like to remind fishermen to dispose of unwanted line responsibly and not leave it in the bushes or water. Two of the most common species treated are the Glaucous-winged Gull, and the Ring-billed Gull which has a distinct black ring around the end of its bill. The Gull in the photo was the result of a road injury, sustaining a fractured wing, Dr.Stacey Gastis of Sunrise Veterinary Clinic, set the wing which was then splinted and wrapped. After a few weeks of rest and then Physiotherapy the Gull was released. We are constantly grateful to Dr.Gastis and other local Vets who spend sometimes hours performing surgery on our birds, donating their time and expertise. Gulls always keep the caregivers at M.A.R.S. on their toes as they are very feisty and enjoy biting given the chance. They are another high maintenance bird due to their messy eating habits and need for constant cage cleaning. Another contaminant for Gulls are grease bins, to avoid poisoning, or oil fouled feathers we encourage business’s and workshops to close these bins. Gull watching is an interesting past time and off-shore from Campbell River there is a large Glaucous-winged Gull colony on Mittlenatch Island Nature Park which is also home to a variety of other shore birds. It is illegal to harass, catch or kill Gulls which are protected under the Federal Migratory Bird Act. For more information on how to help M.A.R.S. or what do if you find injured wildlife, please call 337-2021 or visit our web site at www.wingtips.orgThe photo is a Glaucous winged Gull recovering from a wing fracture MARS photo by Maj Birch |
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