ATLANTIC

Seabirds stuck after major East Coast storm pushes them deep inland

THE CANADIAN PRESS Published Wednesday, January 10, 2018 12:56PM AST Last Updated Wednesday, January 10, 2018 1:00PM AST

Hope Swinimer, facility operator of Hope for Wildlife, poses in the educational centre at the animal rehabilitation facility in Seaforth, N.S. on Friday, Feb.12, 2016. Swinimer says the wildlife refuge is helping to mend a large number of seabirds battered by the high winds and waves. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese)

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SEAFORTH, N.S. -- Seabirds rarely seen on land were stuck, stranded and unable to take flight, after being pushed far inland during last week's violent East Coast windstorm.

Many of the seabirds -- including the tiny, black-and-white dovekie -- have legs that are further back on their bodies, making them unable to take flight once they're on land.

"When they do get blown to land they can't get up and take off and head back to the ocean. They have to take off from the crest of the waves or from the ocean itself," said Hope Swinimer, the founder of Hope for Wildlife in Seaforth, N.S.

The centre received more than 350 calls from people who had found birds injured or unable to take flight after the storm, and advised them to return them to the water as possible.

"I always tell people to stay around and wait at least 10 to 15 minutes. If they come back up on the beach then you know you have a problem, and you're going to have to get them into rehab," she said Tuesday.

She said they have treated about 80 birds suffering everything from exhaustion to broken legs, broken wings and head trauma.

"I find we're seeing way more seabirds than we ever have before," she said.

The storm lashed Atlantic Canada with strong onshore winds, rain, snow and storm surges, resulting in coastal damage and power outages.

Many of the birds were not able to overcome the extremely strong wind gusts, she said.

"Sometimes they smash into things as they're being blown. So we have a few broken legs, a few broken wings, a couple dislocations and some head trauma," she said.

She said while they've seen a lot of gulls, there have also been more unusual seabirds -- everything from bluebills to dovekies, a long-tailed duck, and loons.

Swinimer said about 70 per cent of their patients have been returned to the ocean.

Many just needed a quick checkover by a veterinarian and some time to regain their strength but some of the birds did not recover, she said.

Despite the bitter cold temperatures of the past week and frigid windchills, Swinimer said the cold is not an issue for seabirds.

"It's exhaustion, or lack of food or actual injuries that are going to cause the most problems. Cold is not so much the worry."

-- By Kevin Bissett in Fredericton