Photo courtesy: Wild Care Cape Cod
HARWICH – The first major storm of 2017 seemed to come and go with little damage.
But it did deposit an Atlantic Puffin to one area parking lot.
According to Wild Care Cape Cod, the bird was found at CVS in Harwich, dehydrated and weak.
According to the group’s Facebook page, Atlantic Puffins breed in northern waters on the East Coast, with islands in the Gulf of Maine being a primary breeding ground.
They spend their winters offshore in the North Atlantic including Cape Cod.
Sustained northeast winds and cold temperatures like we experienced this past weekend can weaken seabirds and blow them onshore into “unnatural areas” such as the CVS parking lot.
Photo courtesy: Wild Care Cape Cod
Wild Care officials said the little bird is otherwise in good body condition, and is receiving supportive care and swim therapy to confirm that he is 100% waterproof.
He will be released back out to sea very soon.
Wild Care’s mission is to treat injured, ill and orphaned native wildlife for release, to prevent wildlife casualties through public education and live counseling, and to engage the community in conservation through volunteerism.
Since its founding, Wild Care has accepted over 22,000 wild creatures, representing 275 species of native birds, mammals, and reptiles.
On average Wild Care receives 800 to 1,400 wild animals per year for treatment.
The organization will its Wild Winter Night 2017 fundraiser on March 18 in Eastham. For more information visit wildcarecapecod.org.
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