Seabird was struggling off Florida coast. Then a ‘hero’ surfer stepped in, video shows
People are dubbing a surfer a “hero” after a social media video shows him bringing a struggling bird to shore in Florida.
“This poor fella floated around for a while before being helped out,” said Brandon Terronez, who took the video near Cocoa Beach. “I thought for sure he was some sea creature’s dinner.”
The video shows the surfer picking the floating bird up out of the water and placing it on his light blue surfboard before swimming it back to the shore.
People celebrated the surfer by commenting “my hero” and “thank you for caring, surfer dude” on the post.
Tracy Frampton, Florida Wildlife Hospital director, told McClatchy News the surfer had the right idea in bringing it into shore.
She said a healthy bird typically wouldn’t tolerate being picked up like this.
“They should be able to run and take off from the water,” Frampton said. “So, if it’s not doing that, there’s definitely something wrong.”
What to do if you find an injured seabird
Frampton said pelagic birds, or birds that spend most of their lives at sea, are likely to become hurt if there’s a storm over the ocean. The birds get pushed into shore making it harder for them to feed, she said.
If a bird is found struggling in the ocean, it’s best to bring it to a local animal rehabilitator, Frampton said.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Center has a list of licensed wildlife rehabilitators on their website.
“It’s good to remember if you are going to bring one in to kind of wrap it in a towel, don’t have your radio on or have conversations going in the car because all of that adds stress to the animal,” Frampton said.
The Florida Wildlife Hospital also says you should not feed the bird or give it water, and you should avoid taping its beak so that it cannot breath. The hospital recommends placing the bird in a container to make transportation easier.
This story was originally published September 4, 2024 at 11:57 AM with the headline "Seabird was struggling off Florida coast. Then a ‘hero’ surfer stepped in, video shows."
