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It was a beautiful morning on the west coast of Barbados but
it was made even more stunning with the releasing of a gorgeous seabird, a Red-footed Booby (Sula sula)
affectionately known as Koning. I first
met Koning on March 12th at the RSPCA when I accompanied Dr.
John Webster, who was requested by Dr. Hatcher, of the RSPCA, to identify and
provide information on the bird's habitat and likely origins. This was all in an effort to satisfy the
queries of the Chief Veterinary Officer.
You see, Koning did not arrive on the island like any normal wild bird
would, no; she came on board a cruise liner, so a number of test and protocols
needed to be followed to ensure the safety of other domestic and wild avian and
non-avian species. The law also demanded
a quarantine period of thirty days and at the end of it, we got the ok to
release her.
First Attempt
When Koning was released from quarantine our discussion
shifted to where was the best location for a release. John, Ed and I suggested various locations,
discussing the pros and cons. Finally,
we decided to try releasing her from a cliff on the east coast, namely Ocean
City, St. Philip. The thought behind
this choice was the seclusion, not a popular area, and lift , thanks to the
cliffs. We were also hoping that the
Tropicbirds at that location would entice her to fly. It was very overcast and windy on the day of
the release; Koning did take a special interest in some Tropicbirds as they flew close to the cliff and also in a group of Caribbean Martins flying overhead but
not to the point of joining them. She
preened and exercised her wings but did not take to the skies. After about an hour we gave up hope of any
flight and Koning was returned to her cage. We deduced that maybe the wind was too intense
and for the second attempt a location on the opposite side of the island would
be tried.
Second Attempt
The second attempt at releasing Koning the Red-footed Booby
took place at Brandon’s Beach, on the South-west coast of the island. It was a truly beautiful morning, the sky was
blue, the sea was calm, fingerlings were jumping here and there and a few sea
birds, Royal Terns and Laughing Gulls were feeding on them
close to shore. In the distance, I could
just make out, with the aid of my monarchs, two Brown Boobies sitting on a buoy. This was the perfect setting for our star bird
to take flight, but at first, she didn't.
As before, she preened and stretched her wings as if preparing for
flight. A few Royal Terns flew directly overhead as if investigating the strange
bird sitting on a cage. As before, they
were not able to entice her to flight. As
minutes ticked on and Koning gave no signs of flying off, we were about to call
it quits when someone suggested giving her a little boost. Dr. Hatcher took her charge onto her arm and gently
heaved her up and that did the trick. She
took to the air and in no time was gracefully gliding low over the sea, heading
in a south-westerly direction. see video from RSPCA Facebook page
Red-footed Boobies are common in the waters to the south and
west of the island but are only seen from land during bad weather, especially
when the winds are coming from a westerly direction. The closest nesting sites to our island can be
found west of us on the island of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada
where this bird maybe from.
If
Koning could talk, she no doubt would like to say thank you to Dr. Hatcher and
the RSPCA, it was another
valiant and heroic effort by them. Also the
Chief Veterinary Officer and his staff and of course the local bird experts Dr.
John Webster, Edward Massiah and myself and those many persons who came together
to save her life.
What
a magnificent creature. It was a joy to
see it gliding freely over the waters of the Caribbean. It will forever be a highlight of my birding
journey.
