Dozens of baby birds made their way from Houston’s coast to Austin this week. Not by flying, but huddled together in cardboard boxes loaded in the back of an SUV.
The birds — 30 Mississippi kites and 30 cattle egrets — are staying at Austin Wildlife Rescue after Hurricane Beryl destroyed their rookeries and separated them from their parents. They are lucky survivors among thousands of birds that died in the storm.
“It just obliterated the egrets,” Austin Wildlife Rescue’s Executive Director Jules Maron said. “They sent me a picture of one neighborhood, I mean, there's almost no room to walk without stepping on dead egret bodies.”
The rescue is at its fullest capacity right now and had room to save only 60. The nonprofit saves thousands of animals brought in throughout the year — many of them babies born in the spring. They stay until the fall when mating and migratory seasons begin, and they are ready to be released into the wild.
"We're pinched for space, but we can handle it," Maron said.
Both bird species are expensive and high maintenance. They require special protein-rich diets and need to be fed every four hours from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
"The egrets are like bottomless pits," Maron said. "They eat so much."
She will keep up with this routine for three more months until the birds are strong enough to live on their own.
The Mississippi kites will be released into the wild in September to make their journey to South America. The egrets will make Austin their new home.
Maron said the round-the-clock care and special-order diets will cost the rescue an additional $30,000. The nonprofit launched a fundraising campaign Thursday to help cover some of those costs. It has already reached over $23,000.
