Last week thousands of dehydrated and starving lesser flamingo chicks were rescued from Kamfers Dam in Kimberley when they were abandoned by the adult flamingos after the dam’s water level became severly depleted.
Non-profit organisation Saam Staan Kimberley, the Kimberly SPCA and volunteers worked together to move the chicks to the Kimberly SPCA where the hatchlings were fed and cared for while permits for their removal and transportation to other rehabilitation facilities were organised by the Department of Environmental Affairs.
The Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB) in Table View, Cape Town, has taken 560 baby flamingos into its care and it is requesting a help in hand-rearing the birds.
A hungry flamingo chick being fed by a volunteer at SANCCOB on Thursday, 31 January.
A few of the chicks did not survive the first night, however according to a statement on SANCCOB on Facebook, ‘the first critical 48 hours since admission has passed and with consistent rehydration, medical treatment and feeding regimes, we have witnessed an improvement in the surviving chicks.’
The organisation is appealing to the public for donations of the following items:
– Nestum Baby Cereal Stage 1
– Eggs (boiled & peeled welcome)
– Prawns (frozen & deshelled)
– Sardines (frozen A-grade)
– F10 Veterinary Disinfectant
– Entero-Plus probiotics
In addition, the seabird rescue organisation is calling for volunteers to help feed, wash and care for the birds over the course of the next 3 months. At this point SANCCOB has volunteers signed up until the end of February but still requires help for the six weeks thereafter.
Despite the volunteer schedule being full in February, according to Ronnis Daniels from SANCCOB, the organisation still needs people “with veterinary or chick rearing skills” to offer help in addition to the regular helpers. Ronnis also stated that on inspection this morning the chicks were looking much stronger than previously.
The lesser flamingo is not endemic to the Western Cape and SANCCOB is still in discussion with the relative authorities on what will become of the birds once they are old enough to be released back into the wild.
Contact [email protected] or call 021 557 6155 to support and drop off at 22 Pentz Drive, Table View. Or donate here.
The World of Birds in Hout Bay has also taken in 100 baby birds, while another 250 chicks were transported to uShaka Marine World in Durban. Dr Caryl Knox, a veterinarian at uShaka said, ‘These little birds are fragile and need care and we are doing the best that we can for each one.’ At the moment uShaka does not need any more volunteers, although it says that it will post appeals on social media if this changes in future.
