A syndrome that causes paralysis is the main cause of the entry of seabirds on the Desert Island, in the Ria Formosa, in the Center for the Recovery and Research of Wild Animals (RIAS), the clinical director of the center explained to Lusa this Friday.
“What we found most on Ilha Deserta, which was no surprise, They are paralyzed birds, this is what we call paretic syndrome”said María Casero, highlighting that it is a paralyzing syndrome caused by “food poisoning that affects the two most common species of gulls, the yellow-legged gull and the dark-winged gull.”
The veterinarian is clinically responsible for the treatment of species collected by RIAS for their recovery and eventual release into the wild, an entity based in the Ria Formosa Natural Park, in Olhão, and which is a partner of the Life Ilhas Barreira project, coordinated by the Portuguese Society for the Study of Birds (SPEA).
Asked what is causing the paralysis in these birds, María Casero answered yes: “in principle, due to food poisoning“, because the “seagulls are eating or drinking something somewhere where there is a toxin,” but he stressed that the source “has not yet been identified.”
The official highlighted that, within the framework of the Life Ilhas Barreira project, with regard to the rehabilitation of birds, it was possible to improve the facilities for seabirds, mainly swimming pools, and develop protocols for a better recovery of seabirds, “ “They tend to be shorter in height than other birds.”
The clinical director of the RIAS highlighted that another of the center’s contributions to the project was to evaluate the main threats and causes of death, through the recovery of animals and the performance of necropsies that allowed us to understand the main threats to seabirds in the area. from Ria Formosa.
“I listed all the causes, from the most frequent to the least frequent, and which species were the most affected by each cause of entry,” he stated, highlighting that the data worked is related to the causes of entry of birds from Deserta and Culatra. , two of the main barrier islands of the Ria Formosa.
According to the veterinarian, since there is practically no movement of people on the Desert Island, many dead animals arrive already decomposed at the RIAS and the center’s technicians cannot know the exact cause of death of all of them, although they can identify if “they have any thread or fracture.” to eliminate possible causes.
“Of these very decomposed birds, only some can know the cause of death, others are unknown.”he clarified.
The clinical director of RIAS stated that the data is available in the center’s annual activity reports, which list all species, but highlighted that RIAS has a much larger area of activity, because “it receives animals from the south of the country” and that the Data related to the project focuses more on Deserta “because Culatra has many fewer animals,” due to human presence.
For this reason, María Casero highlighted the importance of projects such as Life Ilhas Barreira, which allow RIAS to obtain financing for scientific studies, resources that, according to her, are not easy to obtain and that are often conditioned, since the priority of center is the recovery of birds and animals it houses.
Source: Observadora
