FL:REHABILITATED PELICANS BACK TO LA

## Shot 08/05/2010. ## MIAMI — Pelicans that were rescued from the oil-stricken Gulf of Mexico are on their way back to their natural habitat after a brief stint in rehabilitation in South Florida. Basking in the sun and enjoying a swim, the pelicans savored their last day in Miami on Wednesday. 'They’re all doing great,' said Wendy Fox, of the Pelican Harbor Seabird Station. After spending one month at the Pelican Harbor Seabird Station in Miami, the pelicans are on their way home. 'The goal of what we do is to get animals back out into the wild. These are 45 very lucky birds,' Fox said. Hundreds of birds in the Louisiana area were not so lucky. 'When they were found, they were very young, and unless they were helped out, their chance of survival would have been very low,' Fox said. The birds were first taken from Louisiana to Jacksonville for treatment. Then, they were brought to Miami for further healing. 'We are just so pleased we could be a part of this, that there is something we could do to help,' Fox said. The pelicans are just 10 to 16 weeks old. In fact, some were so young when they arrived at Pelican Harbor that workers there had to use pelican foster parents and role models to help raise them. 'They do need raising by other pelicans, not by people,' Fox said. Early Thursday morning, a truck left to take the birds back to Louisiana. 'Louisiana Fish and Wildlife has found a release site for these guys that is out west of Louisiana in an area that has not been affected by the oil,' Fox said. 'These guys have all thrived beautifully and I'm sure that they'll be a success in the wild.' ## QC: James

Channel: CNN ImageSource Video Length: 9m 52s Date Found: Wed, Aug 18 2010 6:17 PM Category: Stock Footage Date Produced: Thu, Aug 05 2010 12:00 AM View Count: 0