A WANDERING GREAT white pelican that escaped from Fota Wildlife Park in County Cork has turned up near a popular Dublin beach.
The holidaying male bird had been spotted in Wicklow since leaving the County Cork tourist attraction last week.
A spokesperson for the park confirmed at the time that eagle-eyed spotters saw him on the Avoca River in County Wicklow and in other locations around the east coast:
“Currently the animal care team are monitoring sightings of the bird daily. It is anticipated that he will return to Fota Wildlife Park for food once he becomes hungry.
“This bird is not a danger to the public and will fly away from people if approached. The Great white pelican is found in south-eastern Europe through Asia and Africa, and breeds in swamps and shallow lakes.
“It occurs within 43 Important Bird Areas (IBAs) in its European range,” she said.
However, the pelican has since journeyed on to the capital. Members of the public should not feed the bird if they see it.
This morning, Cathy Courtney told The Journal that she spotted the giant bird at dawn on Bull Island near Clontarf in Dublin.
“I normally go there for the sunrise, but it was overcast today and I didn’t see the sun but I saw the pelican.
“He’s up around the top of the North Bull Island. He looked happy, was waddling or wading away there. It just looked like he was surveying his surroundings.
“It was an interesting sight to see. It appeared that he wasn’t looking for any food but he seemed fine,” Cathy said.
The bird has lived at Fota Wildlife Park since 2012 and had previously launched a bid for freedom and took flight to Wexford in 2018.
Boasting a wingspan of around three metres and weighing around 10kg, the Great White Pelican is one of the largest flying birds in the world.
Spotted the fota pelican again this morning @fotawildlife @BirdWatchIE #pelican pic.twitter.com/jBmTjCNAcB
— Emma Bullock 🇵🇸 (@emmabuk72) August 15, 2021
The pelicans can easily travel significant distances and they guzzle down around 1.5kg of fish every day. They are usually found in swamps and shallow lakes around Southeast Europe, Asia and Africa.
The park said this week that they were hopeful he would return to Fota in late September or early October.
Niall Hatch, of Birdwatch Ireland, said that the flight feathers of the giant bird were cut but they grow back annually.
“He is able to fly great distances so a flight to Dublin wouldn’t be a problem for him.
“They tend to be found more in fresh water areas but they can occur at sea. They feed by catching shoals of fish in their huge beaks and filtering the water out.
“The reason he probably picked Bull Island is because as he was flying over he would have spotted other birds there and that it is an excellent habitat for birds.
“People shouldn’t feed him, but it is unlikely that they would have the correct food for him anyway. He will also be out in the estuary area and will be difficult to get to.
“There is a pattern to this behaviour and he has escaped with another bird in recent times. I believe they were spotted in Wexford.
“Lets hope he returns home, back to Fota as the geese and other migratory birds will be arriving soon,” he added.
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