Great egret nursed back to health, released
After four days of being nurtured back to health, a great egret was released back into the wild off of Cristi Way in Bokeelia late Thursday afternoon.
CROW volunteer Phil Buchanan said the first thing that happens to great egrets once they come into contact with red tide is dehydration. Fortunately, the great egret was not badly affected by red tide.
Harley Whitehurst said the great egret showed up on his property, which has a pond, Saturday, Dec. 8. He said the bird tried to jump over the fence, but had difficulty and banged into it and fell to the ground.
Since it did not fly away, Whitehurst knew something was wrong and called Buchanan.
Thursday afternoon the great egret was brought back to the property and released by the pond. As soon as the gate to the cage opened, the bird took flight and landed near the pond, where it slowly made its way around.
Buchanan said if an individual finds an injured bird they should never give it food or water.