In this blog post, Ken Spencer Science Park facilitator Richard recounts the story of how some of our team worked together to rescue an injured Kingfisher!
While I was out in the Ken Spence Science Park, a couple of kids came up to me to say that there was a bird in the park that was having trouble walking. We thought that it was probably just another pigeon or starling walking around the park as they tend to do during the daytime. When we walked over though, we noticed that the bird was limping and trying to fly, but couldn't. We got closer and realized, to our surprise, that it was neither a pigeon nor a starling. It had quite a large crest and a very long beak!
It was a kingfisher—a bird that isn't usually seen around False Creek. We knew we had to help it, so we lined our chicken kennel with a towel and carefully placed the bird inside. Quickly, we called over another Science World team member, Lyndsay, who we knew was a very avid birder. She checked the bird out and confirmed for sure that it was a kingfisher. Lyndsay examined the injured bird and recommended putting it in a drawstring bag and hanging the bag up. We learned that this helps keep the bird from responding to external stimuli and potentially furthering its injuries. After making sure the kingfisher was safe, we called the Wildlife Rescue Association of BC. Within twenty minutes, a very eager volunteer showed up at the Ken Spence Science Park, picked up the kingfisher, thanked us for helping the bird and promised to take good care of it.
We know the Wildlife Rescue Association will do a great job in helping our new friend.
