# A tough rescue



## SteveNT (Jul 21, 2013)

I was at Scotts Creek crossing in Djukbinj National Park when I saw some movement up the creek. I thought it might be a saltie or big varanus eating something.




but this is what I found.




DILLEMA

I want to free the pelican but...

I am on my own
There are XL salties here
It's really BIG and not happy to see me
I am equipped with a tiny pocket knife and that's it!

So I go for it. She smashed me with her wings and when I tried to control them she smashed me with her beak. Eventually I got most of the lines cut but then she bolted before I could cut it all off.




So she headed up the creek still with line attached to her foot. I hope she made it. I expected her to fly but she swam away. Must have been very tired.




So was I and some of the bruises were still throbbing a week later.

What would you have done?


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## Marzzy (Jul 21, 2013)

Not use to being in or even in the state where Crocs live but If I rocked up there now I don't think I could do anything cause a croc would scare the out of me. 

Maybe if I had a shotgun... 

But then you need a mate to keep watch quite dangerous


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## longqi (Jul 21, 2013)

Well done
In answering your question you havent really got much choice but to have a go

I found a jacket or tshirt tossed over the head can help with pelicans
bloody strong birds
wicked hook on the beak


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## jessicastockwell (Jul 21, 2013)

you did what you could in that situation. Thank god you stopped and helped! Good on you mate.


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## lochie (Jul 21, 2013)

Reminds me of the time I jumped out of a boat in the jardine river (wepia) went up to my hips in mud just to get a pig dog out of a mud bank I saw while fishing.
On the way home I went to the pub and a bloke ran out and the dog started whimpering at the sight of his owner.

The dog had been missing for 3 weeks on a hunting trip, talk about the chances.

So in answer, I did the exact same thing.

Good job mate, some things just ahve to be done.


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## Lawra (Jul 21, 2013)

Good on you!!! I have an irrational but very extreme fear of pelicans but I'm very glad you were able to help it  I would defs not have been able to in your situ.


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## maddog-1979 (Jul 21, 2013)

good on you for having a crack at least


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## disintegratus (Jul 21, 2013)

I'm with Lawra. Not a great deal scares me, but pelicans are one of those things. Truth be told, I'd be more scared of the pelican than the potential crocs, but I like to think I'd have a go anyway. As much as I don't like pelicans, I don't think I could walk away from an animal in pain. Worst case scenario I think I would have killed it, legalities aside I don't think I've got it in me to be so knowingly awful as to leave an animal to starve to death. Then I would have untangled it so that whatever ate it didn't end up in the same or worse predicament.


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## pythonmum (Jul 21, 2013)

That is a huge amount of fishing line on that poor bird. You are braver than I - I think that the possible salties would have put me off more. Then again, if they were near and hungry, they would have eaten the pelican sooner. That reasoning would probably have made me have a go, too. Good job and glad it was you, not me!


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## justin91 (Jul 21, 2013)

Holy crap, you have my upmost respect. Only thing I'm scared of is murky water or water I can't see the bottom of. Freaks me out knowing there could be a predator there and I can't see them. Especially a saltie. 

Good job on rescuing the poor bugger tho.


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## Steveycrack (Jul 21, 2013)

Good on ya. At least you weighed the risks. I, being a city lad, would have entirely forgotten about the risk of crocs.


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## SteveNT (Jul 21, 2013)

Lawra said:


> Good on you!!! I have an irrational but very extreme fear of pelicans but I'm very glad you were able to help it  I would defs not have been able to in your situ.



I'm not very keen on clowns. If it was a clown tangled up I would have left it there ha ha!


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## SteveNT (Jul 21, 2013)

pythonmum said:


> That is a huge amount of fishing line on that poor bird. You are braver than I - I think that the possible salties would have put me off more. Then again, if they were near and hungry, they would have eaten the pelican sooner. That reasoning would probably have made me have a go, too. Good job and glad it was you, not me!



I had a very strong sense that one was there already. There is lots of overhanging growth. The bird had been flapping and splashing for some time. I really didn't enjoy the experience at all. I would have felt compensated if I got all the line off and it flew away. Oh well.


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## Lawra (Jul 21, 2013)

SteveNT said:


> I'm not very keen on clowns. If it was a clown tangled up I would have left it there ha ha!



I'm not too keen on clowns either after reading "IT" all those years ago.


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## SteveNT (Jul 21, 2013)

longqi said:


> Well done
> In answering your question you havent really got much choice but to have a go
> 
> I found a jacket or tshirt tossed over the head can help with pelicans
> ...



I know Peter! At one stage my head was in it's gob and the hook was chewing a nasty hole behind my right ear!


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## Jeffa (Jul 21, 2013)

Good job mate. Love ya work!


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## Renenet (Jul 21, 2013)

If that had been me, I would have helped it, although I wouldn't blame anyone for choosing not to. My conscience would probably eat away at me for the rest of my life if I left an animal to suffer. I'm not freaked out by pelicans, so that wouldn't have been a problem, although I have a healthy respect for their beaks! To reduce that threat I would have tried what Longqi suggested and put something over its head. 

The crocs would be my biggest concern. Like Pythonmum, I probably would have said to myself: "Okay, that pelican has been there for who knows how long, trapped and thrashing around and yet no croc has attacked it. Therefore the chances are that there are no crocs in the area." That may be delusional logic.


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## thals (Jul 21, 2013)

Amazing effort Steve! They can be quite intimidating birds with those beaks and sheer size alone, the bird would've probably phased me more than the potential salties funnily enough. There's just something about them! :lol: That said, I'd have done the same as you mate, can't stand seeing helpless animals. Again well done! 8)


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## disintegratus (Jul 21, 2013)

thals said:


> There's just something about them!



It's their empty, soulless eyes. And also the massive beak. And the general size. And the fact that they're evil.


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## saintanger (Jul 21, 2013)

i would of done the same thing and helped, pelicans are nothing compared to an angry cockatoo stuck in fishing line. the bird tried ripping my whole finger off.


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## Trimeresurus (Jul 21, 2013)

I agree that I'd almost be more worried about the Pelican, you guys seen the video of one eating a whole pigeon live?


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## SteveNT (Jul 21, 2013)

disintegratus said:


> it's their empty, soulless eyes. And also the massive beak. And the general size. And the fact that they're evil.



lol


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## SteveNT (Jul 21, 2013)

Renenet said:


> If that had been me, I would have helped it, although I wouldn't blame anyone for choosing not to. My conscience would probably eat away at me for the rest of my life if I left an animal to suffer. I'm not freaked out by pelicans, so that wouldn't have been a problem, although I have a healthy respect for their beaks! To reduce that threat I would have tried what Longqi suggested and put something over its head.
> 
> The crocs would be my biggest concern. Like Pythonmum, I probably would have said to myself: "Okay, that pelican has been there for who knows how long, trapped and thrashing around and yet no croc has attacked it. Therefore the chances are that there are no crocs in the area." That may be delusional logic.



Ren I went past a big saltie watching a young pig stupidly sitting in the water to cool down. An hour later I passed again... same situation. Coming past a third time the croc cruised past with the remains of the pig in his jaws. They take their time. Patient predators. It seems silly but they are definately super cautious taking land based prey. Also impossible to approach from landwards. My theory is it is an ancestral memory. Dinosaurs would have predated on them on the shoreline.


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## Renenet (Jul 21, 2013)

SteveNT said:


> Ren I went past a big saltie watching a young pig stupidly sitting in the water to cool down. An hour later I passed again... same situation. Coming past a third time the croc cruised past with the remains of the pig in his jaws. They take their time. Patient predators. It seems silly but they are definately super cautious taking land based prey. Also impossible to approach from landwards. My theory is it is an ancestral memory. Dinosaurs would have predated on them on the shoreline.



Interesting. I wish I had more opportunities to observe them doing their thing in the wild. I have the feeling that several have already observed me. 

Recently I saw a video of a croc bursting out of the water and taking a pig dog. It was so fast. You might have seen the same one. It's creepy to think that it could have been there, lurking under the water for a long time before it actually made its move. Fascinating, yet frightening predators.


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## SteveNT (Jul 21, 2013)

Yep. Would have been watching them from the moment they arrived. Lucky for that bloke it wanted the dog. He was gone for all money otherwise.


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## shell477 (Jul 22, 2013)

Well done Steve! I would have done the same, but been terrified at the same time. Or perhaps gone to get some extra help, just in case......

I had to rescue a Wedge-tailed Eagle the other day and had to cross a river (had to strip down to my shirt and undies, probably much to the amusement of the two young vet-students I had taken with me!), but luckily no crocodiles where I live!


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## SteveNT (Jul 24, 2013)

saintanger said:


> i would of done the same thing and helped, pelicans are nothing compared to an angry cockatoo stuck in fishing line. the bird tried ripping my whole finger off.



It just occured to me... how did a cocky get tangled up in fishing line?

My favourite man v beast story up here was a bloke who had his entire lure collection spread out on the loungeroom floor. His wife came home unexpectedly and let his boisterous dog in. The dog quickly was attached to a dozen lures and the bloke dived on it and they rolled around collecting more lures. It took his wife 5 minutes to call for help because she was laughing so hard.

They were both sedated then taken to hospital and surgicaly detached.


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## Becca-Marie (Jul 24, 2013)

No thanks lol im terrified of birds and just watched lake placid.

Sent from my LG-P690f using Tapatalk 2


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## saintanger (Jul 24, 2013)

SteveNT said:


> It just occured to me... how did a cocky get tangled up in fishing line?
> 
> My favourite man v beast story up here was a bloke who had his entire lure collection spread out on the loungeroom floor. His wife came home unexpectedly and let his boisterous dog in. The dog quickly was attached to a dozen lures and the bloke dived on it and they rolled around collecting more lures. It took his wife 5 minutes to call for help because she was laughing so hard.
> 
> They were both sedated then taken to hospital and surgicaly detached.



at a park near the beach there was fishing line on the ground cockatoo got tangled in it, was already tangled wen i got there.

i did not get it all off as i was bleeding from the bite but got some off and was enough for him to fly off.


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