B.C. couple shares 'amazing' osprey rescue during boating trip
'When I did approach the bird, he didn't struggle — he knew he was being rescued,' says Ed Parent
On July 23, Natalie Parent and her husband, Ed, set out on a pontoon boat trip with a group of friends on Shuswap Lake, near Salmon Arm, B.C.
During their excursion, they made a new friend — after an unexpected rescue mission.
Natalie says the 1.8-kilogram osprey, boasting a 1.5-metre wingspan, had been struggling in the water — the same spot from which a bald eagle had flown away.
"[The osprey] didn't get out of the water at all — actually, when we got closer, it almost seemed as if he was trying to swim towards the boat to get some safety," she told host Chris Walker on CBC's Daybreak South.
After watching the osprey struggle for about 15 minutes, Ed decided to take action, jumping into the water armed with a pool noodle and a towel.
"When I did approach the bird, he didn't struggle — he knew he was being rescued, and he pulled up his wings," Ed said on Daybreak South.
"He looked at me in the face. My face was inches away from his face — he could have pecked at me, and he didn't. He just wanted to be rescued.
"It was an amazing feat."
Once back on the boat, Natalie discovered several gashes under the osprey's left wing — likely the result of a confrontation with the eagle over a fish, she says.
But now, safe and sound, Natalie and Ed decided to name the osprey Lucky.
Osprey under care of B.C. Wildlife Park in Kamloops
Ospreys primarily feed on fish, which is why they usually inhabit areas near rivers and lakes, according to the Wildlife Rescue Association of B.C.
Over the years in Canada, many ospreys have been rescued after getting tangled in power lines and fishing gear.
The Parents, co-owners of a pet supply store in Salmon Arm, brought Lucky to the Shuswap Paws Rescue Society, who then brought him to B.C. Wildlife Park in Kamloops.
The park's animal care manager, Tracy Reynolds, is now caring for the osprey.
She says after undergoing surgery on his wing and receiving antibiotics, Lucky has been recovering well.
She says the park plans to release the osprey as soon as he's fully healed.
"Ospreys tend to not eat when they're in captivity, [but] we usually have to assist feeding them the whole time, which is stressful on the animal, so we will release it as soon as we feel it is ready to go," said Reynolds on CBC's Daybreak Kamloops.
Ed says he's wating for updates from the Wildlife Park, as he hopes to be part of the team releasing Lucky back to the area where he was frequently seen, before his rescue.
With files from Daybreak South and Daybreak Kamloops