LAFAYETTE — Three men fishing along the Vermilion River in Lafayette rescued a barred owl they found hanging upside down from a tree by fishing line.
The fishermen recovered the owl and contacted Letitia Labbie, owner of Acadiana Wildlife Education and Rehabilitation, to rehabilitate the bird.
"There is a barred owl that several gentleman found while they were out fishing. It was hanging upside down by fishing line, and unfortunately, it happens a lot," Labbie said.
"They were able to cast a line and pull the bird over and then cut all the line off of it and it was also fortunate that it wasn’t wrapped around the wing and the legs because a lot of time that makes them non-releasable," she said.
Labbie provided the owl with fluids and medication.
"So once I had it, I got it perked back up, gave it fluids, gave it medication, and within a day it was released back to where it came from so it was a good release," Labbie said.
This is not the first time she has seen a bird caught in fishing line.
She said, "I’ve seen Osprey over at Lake Martin that have been tangled up in the fishing line, and just by the time I got out there on a boat it was too late. We couldn’t rescue them."
There are ways to prevent harming wildlife while fishing.
"You can pull in your fishing line, lease it, wrap it up, throw it in a trash can, not leave it out in the wild." She added, "Leaving it there is always going to be an entanglement issue for wildlife. So, birds are going to get into it, egrets, herons, hawks and owls. Eagles will swallow something if they catch it."
To contact Labbie about an injured bird, you can go to her Facebook page or her website.
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