Jacksonville Beach Animal Control and FWC rescue injured pelican

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. — Rather than enjoying a beautiful morning by the ocean, beachgoers in Jacksonville spent their morning calling for help.

Three pelicans spent hours walking from the shore to the dunes near the beach entrance. One of the pelicans was seriously injured because its wing was hanging loosely.

Around 2:45 p.m., the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and Jacksonville Beach Animal Control rescued the injured pelican from the dunes.

Jacksonville Beach Animal Control told First Coast News the pelican was sent to a bird sanctuary.

“I’ve seen them (pelicans) on the pier with fishing lines and hooks on them before, but I’ve never seen this before,” beachgoer Mary Jean Smith said.

Jean Smith said she hadn’t seen a hurt pelican on Jacksonville Beach since Hurricane Matthew, and it was an unusual sight this morning.

Just steps from the sand, Jacksonville Beach Ocean Rescue Captain Rob Emahiser says he received several calls about the injured pelican.

Emahiser says he has also called FWC and other wildlife/bird rescue agencies and agencies. He says it’s best left to those with experience to save birds like pelicans.

“Well, I think most of us care about animals and some of our sitters are animal lovers and we’d like to do something about that,” Emahiser said. “But we know we can’t just lock them up and bring them here because we can’t help them, we’re not vets and we won’t have the resources to actually help them,” he added.

Jacksonville Beach Animal Control said the other two pelicans were uninjured and did not need rescue.

The FWC said it would conduct a full investigation into the incident. The commission adds that if you see an injured bird, call the FWC first before attempting a rescue.