Conservancy of SWFL sees spike in shoreline birds affected by red tide

LEE COUNTY, Fla.- The Conservancy of Southwest Florida is seeing a spike in shoreline birds suffering from toxins caused by red tide.

In the past two weeks workers have taken nearly two dozen cormorants into their hospital.

They were dehydrated, disoriented, and struggled to stand and walk.

Since then, the birds have received treatment to get them back in good health.

“Out here at the pool, this is the final spot while they are rehabilitating. They’ll get strong out here, they’ll have as much as they need to eat, they’ll start to build up their flight muscles and then they’ll be released from here,” said Joanna Fitzgerald, Director of the Vonarx Wildlife Hospital.

Even though there are no reports of red tide at the moment, experts say it takes a while to work through the birds’ bodies.

The birds will be returned to their natural habitat in a few weeks.