VICTORIA — An unlikely visitor to Vancouver Island is recovering at an animal rescue centre after being found, shivering and injured, on the Victoria waterfront.
The female brown booby is receiving treatment at the SPCA’s wild animal rehabilitation centre after travelling far north from its normal territory.
The brown booby is usually spotted in Mexico, California and Hawaii where they are known for dramatic plunges into the sea to catch seafood, including squid and anchovies.
Centre spokeswoman Marguerite Sans say when the bird was found on Monday it was very ill, suffering from a puncture wound to its chest, injuries and abrasions to its feet and was underweight.
It is now receiving fluids and other treatment at the centre and staff aren’t sure when the young adult bird will be strong enough for release.
Sans says it’s the first time the centre has cared for one of these large seabirds, which can have a wing span of nearly 1.5-metres and is identified by a brown head, neck, back and wings with a white chest and lower body.
