Creature Feature - June 2004
	Good Bye Baby Great Blue Herons! On March 24th we received a 2 1/2 lb baby Great Blue Heron that had fallen from the nest. The next day, we received a 1 1/4 lb baby who also had fallen from the next. Since neither of these nestlings could be returned, and because raising just one baby is not in its best interest and also potentially dangerous, we decided to raise these babies together. Because they were not nest-mates, it took a few days to get these guys to make friends. Luckily for us, they finally did. After almost 2 months of graduating from little menhaden fish ( Thanks volunteer John MacNeill for keeping us stocked) onto larger thread herring and eventually to an outdoor 40 foot flight cage, these guys grew up into large, fat and healthy birds. One of the last stage of rehab is live fish training . We had to make sure they knew that food moves! Both birds knew just what to do and had no problem. Finally, Release day! We brought the now juveniles back to the second babies original site, a beautiful spot on the Banana River. Here are some release photos thanks to Mary & Ken Peters ( who brought in the second baby). Mary and Ken continued to support feed them for a few days until they settled into their new environment and began their 'second chance'. Florida Wildlife Hospital is a non-profit organization which cares for wildlife patients with donations from the public. We receive no state or federal funding. If you would like to contribute for medications, food and care for this and the other 3000 wildlife patients we receive yearly please use the donations link below or mail to : Florida Wildlife Hospital, 4560 N US Hwy 1, Melbourne, FL 32935. You may email for more information. Thank you for supporting Florida Wildlife Hospital and Florida's Treasure...our wildlife. Other Creature Features White Pelican River Otters Snail Kite Great Blue Heron Babies! Glaucous Gull