Venice Florida Jetties pelican landing on water

www.portraitphotographybyjennifercarroll.com

The Dangers of Fishing Line on Seabirds

Question: What happens when you hook a seabird and cut the line?

Answer:    You kill the bird!

If you spend any time fishing especially in salt water, you will catch a seabird. They will go after your bait, get tangled in your line and even take the fish at the end of your line. What to do? Read on.

The dangers of fishing line are numerous. If a bird gets tangled and you cut the line, the bird can get the line wrapped around its wings, legs, neck and beak. This can prevent the bird form flying, swimming and eating. The end result, death by starvation. If it’s a nesting bird the line can get wrapped around the chicks and kill them as well.

Line and lures left in coastal trees, on bridges and fishing piers are lethal as well. A bird can’t see the line when it comes in for a landing and ends up getting tangled and hanging from the end of a line cut by a careless person. A lure left hanging off a mangrove branch may look like an easy lunch for a hungry bird, that is until the treble hooks sink into its bill. Then the bird is trapped against a tree limb until it dies or an ethical fisherman takes the time to free it. Now as someone who has fished for 50+ years I understand that not every piece of line or lure is retrievable. In this case cut the line as close as you can to minimize any risk.

If you’re fishing off a bridge or pier and you come across someone’s old line, pick it up and find the nearest used fishing line container or trash can, if there are none available then roll it up and put it in your tacklebox until you get home. Wildlife safety is every sportsmen’s responsibility

The most common birds that get caught are pelicans, seagulls and ducks. So, what do you do if you find you have one of these birds on the end of your line? The first thing is to NEVER cut the line! Reel in the bird and ask for help. Hold the bird firmly, taking care not to injure his wings or legs and assess the situation. Next cut the line off the fishing rod, if the bird is tangled carefully cut the line away from the bird and dispose of properly. If the bird is hooked don’t remove the hook like you would from a fish, remove it like you would from a child, if the barb is into the birds body, cautiously push the barb the rest of the way through the skin, cut the hook in two using the pliers from your tackle box and back out the rest of the hook. Every tackle box should have at least one pair of pliers.

Inspect the bird for any injuries to its wings, legs or body, if there are no injuries then release the bird. If the bird does have obvious injuries call your local state game warden service, they will know where to take the injured bird.

Most times it will be another angler that catches a bird and has no idea what to do. If you witness this offer help but always tell him not to cut the line. Most of the birds I have helped free from hooks or line have been on other peoples’ rods. Sometimes people panic and cut the line because they are afraid of how the bird could hurt them. Seagulls, pelicans and ducks are not going to hurt you. I have been hit on the head with a pelican wing and bitten on the hand by a seagull, but all flew away free and I had a story to tell. More care must be taken if you are dealing with a blue heron or a bird of prey such as an osprey. Their beaks and talons can cut and puncture your skin. The safest way to handle these birds is to cover their heads with a shirt or towel, carefully free the bird and back away.

If you come across a bird in distress, if possible rescue it. Remember its not just seabirds that can be injured by a careless fisherman but also other animals like otters and raccoons.

As sportsmen, it is our responsibility to protect our woods, water and wildlife. We can do this by teaching the next generation to be good stewards of our environment by not feeding wild animals and birds, packing out what they pack in and sometimes careless peoples’ trash as well, and to care about what’s going on around our favorite fishing spot.

an unhooked pelican Baca Grande Florida

safely released pelican flying free