Scores of starving and sick pelicans are found along the California coast

NEWPORT BEACH, California — Dozens of sick and starving pelicans have been found in coastal California communities in recent weeks, and many others have died.

Lifeguards spotted a group of 20 sick pelicans on a pier on the coast of Newport Beach earlier this week and called in wildlife experts to help.

Debbie McGuire, executive director of the Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach, said the birds are the latest group they have tried to save after taking in more than 100 other pelicans that were anemic, dehydrated and weighed only half of what they normally had. should.

“They’re starving and if we don’t get them into care, they’re going to die,” McGuire said. “It really is a crisis.”

It is not immediately clear what makes the birds sick. Some wildlife experts noted that the pelicans are malnourished, even though there is plenty of marine life off the Pacific coast.

Bird Rescue, which operates two wildlife centers in Northern and Southern California, reported 110 sick pelicans in the past three weeks, many of which became entangled in fishing lines or hooks. A similar event occurred in 2022, the group said.

Wildlife organizations are focused on caring for the birds until they can be released back into the wild.