Hermann Park – Sunday, February 18, 2007

Part 1 of 2

Pied-billed Grebe Choking on Trash at Hermann Park’s McGovern Lake

Marsha Seyffert and I visited Hermann Park to check the ducks and grebes currently residing on McGovern Lake. Shortly after arrival, our photo trip was spoiled when we found a Pied-billed Grebe near the paddle-boat rental area choking on a hard plastic band which was stuck on its head, specifically around the neck and inside the bill. The black band looked like it came from part of the top of a large drink bottle. Many of the park visitors dispose of their trash by simply throwing it into the lake without consideration of consequences their actions have on the environment shared with the many wild animals that make their homes there. At 10:00 a.m. Marsha decided to report this disaster to the zoo as it was the closest place that should have qualified personnel and equipment to catch the bird and free it from the band. Shortly after her return, a crew of about half a dozen zoo employees showed up wearing rubber boots and carrying short-handled fish nets. The lake is far too deep for rubber boots; still, not a bad beginning. After only a minute of observing their actions we became speechless. Some of them started knocking their nets on the paddle-boats scaring the bird away from under the boat where it had taken refuge for rest and protection. This was the best place to take a chance at rescuing it with the net. Most of the team watched without much interest or a real grasp of the gravity of the situation. One exception was a young man who used this time to have a private conversation on his mobile phone. Marsha’s blood began to boil. Other zoo employees came with ideas which showed their complete lack of knowledge about birds. Some, for reasons we could not understand, started throwing rocks and sticks near the already panicked grebe forcing the bird to flee even farther from the possible sheltered rescue area. The conversation was a jovial one as they discussed and joked about the poor aiming ability of the thrower without even the slightest concern that the bird might be hit by one of the rocks or sticks being thrown. Another astonishing suggestion was made; maybe they could use bread to bait the grebe. I could not believe my ears. Grebes are typical predators. They feed on fish, amphibians, insects, etc. This crew had no clue how to accomplish a rescue or even an elementary knowledge of birds. Maybe on their next mission they will try to bait a Bobcat with a carrot. If a rabbit will come to a carrot maybe a Bobcat will too. After all, they are both mammals.

After about 20 minutes the zoo personnel left. A commitment to her elderly mother pulled Marsha away from the scene. I was left to try to resolve this situation by myself. The grebe kept trying hopelessly to rid itself of the band and becoming more exhausted with each fruitless attempt. The time was about 11:00 a.m. I needed help and I needed it fast. One of the employees from the paddle-boat concession came around in one of the paddle-boats. I asked him if he could help. He was very eager to do so. I got the net they use to pick-up trash from the water (small and with a narrow opening, but better than nothing) and he started trying to bring the bird closer to the bank. Our attempt did not work well as the grebe panicked when cornered close to the bank and the net was too small to take quick action without a chance of further injury to the bird. I noticed that the boat could get very close to the bird in open water. I asked the man in charge of the paddle-boat concession to let me go with his employee on the boat. He refused and the employee quickly returned to the dock upon seeing that his boss was angry with him for wasting time trying to rescue a wild bird. For many people birds are interesting if they taste good, but why waste time on a small ‘duck’ they cannot even eat. I asked the man in charge who his boss was, but his answer was that he works for himself. That left me with no option to pursue the possibility of any further assistance for the bird from them. I still believe that this was the best time and opportunity for rescue of this helpless bird ensnared by man’s slovenly ways.

The only option open to me at that moment was the zoo, so I went to the office. By now it was around 11:30 a.m. The dispatcher said that she was well aware of the problem of the choking “duck” and that several attempts had been made by the professional “bird handlers” to rescue it. She assured me that further action and plans were being developed. I froze for a moment. “It was only one short ‘attempt’ done by people without qualifications” – I said, “and this is a Pied-billed Grebe not a duck”. “I was there the whole time watching the bird,” I added. I am not sure if that triggered any understanding of what species of bird we were talking about. I asked for the phone numbers of any city services that might be responsible for providing a rescue action. I also added that I would write a story about this incident. The last statement triggered a very fast reaction and I was put immediately on the phone with the Director of Public Affairs for the Houston Zoo. This was a very nice conversation, but no fast help was offered. He had been informed that many attempts to save the ‘duck’ were made by the professional “bird handlers” from the zoo. Again, I had to repeat what I had observed to help explain my point of view. He tried to excuse the zoo “professionals” by the fact they have hundreds of birds and all employees are busy taking care of them. Finally after asking again for a phone number to call to get the city rescue service, I was provided with the phone number to the City of Houston Parks Department. I immediately called them and after a quick conversation, a park ranger arrived shortly. Again, he was a very nice person, willing to help, but without access to any equipment. He said we can try to call Texas Parks and Wildlife but they might show up in 2-3 days. I said forget it. It took the ranger only a few seconds to warm up to the idea of taking a paddle-boat and net and together trying to catch the bird. We were granted permission to use a paddle-boat. I was most happy that finally we had a good chance to rescue the grebe. Well, when we tried to find the bird, it was nowhere in sight. We spent some time going around checking even the banks far away and the open water. The little grebe had simply disappeared. I will not speculate as to what happened as nobody will ever know for sure. What I know is that again in my life, I have seen this lesson repeated many times. There are only a very few people who are sensitive to helping injured wildlife. Many do not care at all and are not going to expend any effort or ‘waste’ their time. It seems to be next to impossible to teach people to take care of our natural environment, or better said, what is left of it or that which has been restored. Unfortunately, this is just another sad story.

The ranger left and I stayed watching the lake with mixed feelings and thoughts. I was approached by another zoo employee who came there to check on the grebe situation. He actually was from the bird department and had an understanding and knowledge of birds. What shocked me was that he came there on his own time (lunch break) after he heard that there was a bird that needed help. Nothing further could be done as the grebe was gone, but at least I met one person who showed he cared and was even willing to help on his own free time.

Part 2 of 2

Birds Need URGENT HELP at Hermann Park with Deadly Overflow Trap

While spending the rest of the day near the lake I learned about another nightmare, even worse than the grebe incident, a horrible fact about the place. The lake has a water-spill overflow to regulate the water level in the lake. Last year (and maybe before that as well) many little ducklings were trapped there, sucked into it, and drowned, because there is not proper maintenance. Filtration screens which are supposed to stop any large pieces from entering the spill are in very poor condition, broken with gaping openings that will let small young birds go straight through. I was told that many birds were lost last year but nothing was done to stop it. With breeding season fast approaching, it will happen again this year if the screen is not replaced. I would like to ask anyone who has influence or knows where to send the request for action to be taken to repair the water overflow screen to contact me. The city is responsible for the lake and has an obligation to keep it safe for everybody, birds included. Birds as well as all wildlife are not a disposable decoration of the lake or surroundings or something that is expendable. This lack of proper maintenance suggests an attitude that wildlife is disposable when it comes to spending money to repair the facility to protect it.

I am going to forward this post to several organizations in an effort to find out how important the subject is to them. Again, I ask everyone who can help solve the problem to come forward quickly before it is too late for this year’s ducklings.