Durban – The South African Association for Marine Biological Research (Saambr) has indicated that it would be a critical 24 hours for a seabird found with metal in its gut.
Saambr’s Ann Kunz said that their most recent patient, an adult southern giant petrel was found resting on a beach on the South Coast last weekend.
Kunz said the bird was initially taken to Dr Leon Bruggemann at Margate Veterinary Hospital where they managed to stabilise him and do a full evaluation.
“After doing x-rays, they identified a small object in the petrel’s abdominal space which, because it’s so clear, they assumed to consist of metal,” Kunz said.
“As a result, they started treating him with medication that will avoid metal toxicity.”
Once the bird was stable enough, he was driven by South Coast Animal Rescue (Scar) and Tidy Towns Shelly to Margate. Scar also assisted in organising the transport.
Kunz said that after giving the bird time to settle down following the initial stress of the journey, the Saambr veterinary team evaluated him under general anaesthesia, did follow-up x-rays and collected blood for diagnostic purposes.
“His liver is unfortunately not doing very well and we suspect that this is due to the metal in his gut. Time is against him as he needs to be up in the air, and every day he is on the ground is a challenge for him,” she said.
“We are doing everything we can to help him recover as quickly as possible and in spite of being very weak, he is responding favourably to treatment.”
Kunz said the next 24 hours are critical for this majestic bird.
Kunz explained that southern giant petrels are part of the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels programme and are reportedly affected by long-line fishing, plastic ingestion, pollution, predation by introduced animals and habitat destruction by grazing animals. Fortunately, the impact of long-line fishing has been reduced in recent years.
Daily News