There's a place where people Save Our Seabirds and help the feathered ones

SARASOTA -- Once heard, it’s a call you may never forget, from a bird Lee Fox is dedicated to making sure is here once she’s gone.

Lee Fox released an eagle back into the wild after it was rescued and rehabbed at Save Our Seabirds. Photo Credit: Mary Lou Johnson

It’s the Sandhill Crane and Fox is the founder of Save Our Seabirds (SOS), the place where she ensures these birds and all other feathered friends have a chance to survive, against all odds.

Stop in and visit her at 1708 Ken Thompson Parkway, and ask her to tell you the stories behind the birds rehabbed at the facility. She knows every single detail and mothers the wounded, sick, homeless and hungry back to health, and some back to flight.

”I was a mom and I went from being a mom to doing this,“ she said. ”I have four children, but I’ve always had birds. I just one day graduated from small pet birds to large wild ones.“

Her crisp, white hair distinguished Fox from the volunteers at Save Our Seabirds on Wednesday. A lonely pelican waited outside the rehabbed pelican aviary, where over 15 pelicans called home.

To an outsider, one would think this ”visitor“ was curious, or maybe wanting a bite to eat or even a sip of water from the pool.

But to the expert, it was apparent this pelican may be dehydrated or starved. Fox didn’t wait to find out, and had the pelican’s health checked out by swooping down to pick it up in one movement.

Save Our Seabirds is a non-profit rehabilitation and educational facility open to the public across from MOTE Marine Labs. Photo Credit: Mary Lou Johnson

”We don’t want to be a zoo; we are a rehab and educational facility,“ she added after passing the visiting pelican along to a volunteer to have it tested. ”We are here to help, to educate and to be surrogate parents to the hurt.“

The facility where SOS volunteers and staff do their rescue and rehab work is ideal. For those who remember the once Pelican Man’s coastal bird rescue, it’s now Save Our Seabirds.

”It’s completely ideal for the birds that are in captivity and for the people who find these birds,“ Fox said. ”We are close to the water, but we will never be completely full house.“

Mainly because the mission of SOS is to get as many of the birds up and moving, or flying, again, so they can be released back into the wild to soar over our oceans and roost in our trees.

But with a volunteer staff and a mission reliant on donations, this year has been one of the hardest to make ”fly.“ SOS is a non-profit organization, and though admission into the facility is free, they rely heavily on people's help.

”Everything is done through donations and we are just making do with what we have,“ she said. ”There aren’t enough funds right now.“

She pointed to mountains of towels next to the bird rehab building and a sign on the washing machine that said it was broken. Just a sign of the times for the facility, but nothing more than a slight inconvenience for the volunteers. Fox said a volunteer came the other day and took all the bird rehab towels to a laundry mat to help out.

So, maybe you’re wondering how all the birds find their way to SOS?

Fox said either she goes out to a rescue or the trained volunteers go out to bring in the wounded or sick bird. Please make note: Do not attempt to rescue a bird unless it is injured or sick. Herons and egrets can be dangerous because they protect themselves by aiming their beaks at people's eyes. Baby birds are most likely being cared for by a mother bird and should be left where they are found, so the mother can feed them.

Lee Fox pulled out a large fish from the mouth of a choking pelican. This bird would have died because the fish was too big to swallow.   Fox is often pulling tiny bones out of the mouths of birds.  Photo Credit: Mary Lou Johnson

Fox said, she begged, please do not bother the baby birds during this Spring season, unless they are visibly wounded.

But most of the birds that are rescued and brought in are injured because of human error.

Whether the injury is from fishing lines, paper clips, golf balls, volleyball netting, hit-and-run drivers, these magnificent winged creatures are victims to a world they were never meant to fly in.

”I am a good study and a good nurse to the birds,“ Fox said. ”I can stabilize and change wounds, but I don’t do surgeries. I drive the birds to St. Pete to a vet for surgeries.“

Save Our Seabirds is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and there are guided tours on the weekend at 2 p.m. each day.

Inside the facility, located across from Mote Marine Laboratory, there are pelicans, herons, parrots, hawks, vultures, swans, Sandhill Cranes, songbirds, egrets, even owls.

The Wood Stork is one of SOS’s most endangered birds on its grounds, and there are three being treated at the facility this month.

During the Spring season, to honor all the little feathered ones coming into the world, The Bradenton Times is going to report on a story once a week about some of the local rescues that Lee Fox and the SOS volunteer team conducted.

They are stories that can break your heart, then patch it up again with a happy ending for most of SOS’s tenants.

”We do our work here for the preservation of wildlife,“ Fox said. ”For me specifically – I want generations to be able to enjoy them the way I do. If we don’t take care of the birds, they just won’t be around.“

Erica Newport is a daily reporter for The Bradenton Times. She covers art, culture and community. If you have a story that might interest Erica, please e-mail her using erica.newport@thebradentontimes.com address.  She also takes your questions related to our weekly theme days and provides advice and opinions for our readers.

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