Please don't feed the PELICANS!

It's obvious that some people have been feeding the pelicans up on the deck of the pier at the cleaning station. All that does is to attract more pelicans (pelican-poop) to the fish cleaning station, which is essentially a food processing area. There are signs at that location for that reason.

Some people may ask - "What's the difference between feeding them on the pier and feeding them (by throwing the carcasses over the rail) as they gather in the water below the cleaning station?" The answer lies in -- where the poop goes. When they're in the water, they poop in the water. That's where it belongs and where it would go, naturally, not on the cleaning table!

https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...fa&oe=5CA21E44

Brown Pelican pouch tear is the result of illegal feeding of bone-in fish carcass.
The exposed carcass bones tear the pouch leaving the Pelican to starve to death.
Feeding Pelicans from fish cleaning stations is against the law...

It occurs to me the need to not only identify what NOT to do, but what TO do. When cleaning fish, if you leave the carcasses there on the table, the pelicans will fly up on the table. They were coming right up to me today. The only option I can imagine is what I do and throwing the carcasses in the water. Obviously direct feeding is out. But back to the cleaning station. What other options are there that will keep pelicans away from fish cleaning/food preparation area?

As far as that injured pelican is concerned, one day last week as I was walking by the cleaning table on my way to the octi I saw a pelican, maybe that one, that was trying to swallow a sheepshead carcass. Other pelicans were trying to steal it from him and he flew off.

It looked like a bad situation.

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Originally Posted by frednic

As far as that injured pelican is concerned, one day last week as I was walking by the cleaning table on my way to the octi I saw a pelican, maybe that one, that was trying to swallow a sheepshead carcass. Other pelicans were trying to steal it from him and he flew off.

It looked like a bad situation.

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Yeah, I can see how a sheepshead could do that!

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Originally Posted by eym_sirius

It occurs to me the need to not only identify what NOT to do, but what TO do. When cleaning fish, if you leave the carcasses there on the table, the pelicans will fly up on the table. They were coming right up to me today. The only option I can imagine is what I do and throwing the carcasses in the water. Obviously direct feeding is out. But back to the cleaning station. What other options are there that will keep pelicans away from fish cleaning/food preparation area?

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probably silly, but could a garbage disposal of some sort of industrial service be installed? there is water and power there after all. it probably would not help with the shark problem as well, but maybe...

I suggested a Commercial Grinder but got no response. I was wondering if they just put a piece of say 8 inch plastic pipe run down to just couple of feet off the bottom and carcasses would go to the bottom. Pelicans wouldn't dive to get them and seen at times many a carcass laying on the bottom with sharks swimming all around.

Would probably get stopped up.

That pic hurts my heart.. yeah yeah i'm not a snowflake, but I do have a soft spot for birds.

I really like Tato's suggestion and would add using a slightly smaller reduction fitting to the pipe to that large chunks wouldn't stop up the pipe---say, a ten inch pipe with an eight inch reduction.

Taken the commercial grinder/emulsifier idea to Montgomery twice, and once interest was shown in it. I managed to provide a quote, securing one just over cost (since budget was a concern) and never heard back.

I think their concern is both liability of the grinder and maintenance/upkeep costs.

I'm still wondering about the large PVC Pipe has anyone else seen a shark take a carcuss off the bottom.

:(
Orange Beach Wildlife Center and Management Program

There aren’t many pelicans that will allow you to handle and hold them the way Sam will. His friendliness however is the exact reason why he has to visit us so often. He has become the beloved mascot at the Gulf State Park-Alabama pier. He is notorious for getting free hand outs from fisherman, tourist and everyone in between. Due to his socialization, he expects to be fed by people and when he isn’t offered food, he has no problem attempting to steal it from a fisherman. Often times while it is still connected to a fishing line and hook, putting himself in a very dangerous situation. Sam has had an injured leg, surgery to remove a swallowed treble hook, many gashes that required antibiotics to heal, and more. He is here with us for another round of recovery due to a wound probably caused by a hook. It is a pretty deep gash and the risk of infection is high. We unfortunately see so many shorebirds that have the same habituated tendencies that Sam does. Many of those birds have not been as lucky and have died as a result of their hook and line related injuries.
Please do not feed any wildlife, no matter how tempting. If you accidentally hook a bird, please do not cut the line. If you see injured wildlife, please report to our hotline at
844-303-WILD (9453)

https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...bd&oe=5D8DE7F2

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Originally Posted by Robert(Tato)Piteo

I'm still wondering about the large PVC Pipe has anyone else seen a shark take a carcuss off the bottom.

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This would be an incredibly cheap and easy thing to try. Someone would probably even donate the pipe.

The state taking an official action on this subject would open a can of worms that is being ignored with the carcasses being thrown in whole at the present time. Right now the problem is something of a "sleeping dog" (to mix my metaphors) that is liable to bite when awakened. If they put a grinder in, they'd better do it quietly - there are all kinds of people who would decide to protest if given the opportunity.

As I look into my crystal ball I see fishing prices increasing, and ultimately a freezer for disposal in the parking lot. If I am right we are better off letting the dog sleep.

Commercial grade fish grinder would be the answer. It would require a tank to handle the grindings, as I wouldn't presume that it could be just dumped into the sea. Would make a helluva chum slick though.

There is a grinder at the fish cleaning station in Port Washington, Wisconsin that routinely handles 25# king salmon carcasses without even shaking the table. The grindings are pumped out when needed (city worker checks the tank a couple times a week) and those grindings go to a pet food company.

I believe the grinder at Port Washington cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $6,000 and was paid for by the local fishing group through memberships and fund raisers. Same group also maintains a webcam for the launch/basin so folks can take a look at lake conditions before they leave their home.

There has to be a middle ground solution. Some may call the pelicans a pest, but IMO they are just opportunistically feeding.

“Pet food company gets the grindings”

Exactly,..
All commodities have a value, and protein has a premium one at that.
Find the end user for that value and you have a baseline to reverse the numbers to where it works for the pier or not. Even if it has to be subsidized, the defray might be significant. No one wants a chum slick given the current shark problem as it is.

Curious if the grinder system mentioned has a method to chill the grindings? A big tank of fish grindings would get pretty funky pretty quick in the Alabama heat. Dunno about how all of it would work but this seems a good suggestion, and also has a working template from another pier to go on.

Many times for things like this the first step is to find seed money for a “feasibility study”. Yea,...I know,...sounds bureaucratic, but that’s usually how it works. Decisions are easier to justify if you’ve got some numbers to back it up.
And,..as an additional also,.. from what I’ve experienced, an elective project like this requires a “champion” to spearhead it,..usually a motivated individual willing to put in the time to grind the gears (pun intended, haha) and get the thing going. Usuallly, once some momentum is started, the crowd can usually buoy a project and the individual champion gets a breather. Not volunteering mind you,..too much distance as yet for me.

Just tossing out some musings. And after all the shark problems that seem to be unique to this pier, (so much so that the inertia of government has been overcome to alter the shark fishing rules,...albeit just a tad) it just seems common sense that reducing the amount of dross that goes over the side each day would be a good thing,..for everyone involved,..pelicans, shark reduction, and ultimately, the pier fishing community.

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Originally Posted by SteveH

“Pet food company gets the grindings”

Exactly,..
All commodities have a value, and protein has a premium one at that.
Find the end user for that value and you have a baseline to reverse the numbers to where it works for the pier or not. Even if it has to be subsidized, the defray might be significant. No one wants a chum slick given the current shark problem as it is.

Curious if the grinder system mentioned has a method to chill the grindings? A big tank of fish grindings would get pretty funky pretty quick in the Alabama heat. Dunno about how all of it would work but this seems a good suggestion, and also has a working template from another pier to go on.

Many times for things like this the first step is to find seed money for a “feasibility study”. Yea,...I know,...sounds bureaucratic, but that’s usually how it works. Decisions are easier to justify if you’ve got some numbers to back it up.
And,..as an additional also,.. from what I’ve experienced, an elective project like this requires a “champion” to spearhead it,..usually a motivated individual willing to put in the time to grind the gears (pun intended, haha) and get the thing going. Usuallly, once some momentum is started, the crowd can usually buoy a project and the individual champion gets a breather. Not volunteering mind you,..too much distance as yet for me.

Just tossing out some musings. And after all the shark problems that seem to be unique to this pier, (so much so that the inertia of government has been overcome to alter the shark fishing rules,...albeit just a tad) it just seems common sense that reducing the amount of dross that goes over the side each day would be a good thing,..for everyone involved,..pelicans, shark reduction, and ultimately, the pier fishing community.

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The tank is underground, much like a septic tank so cooling is not required. As I think about this out loud, I firmly believe that where there is a will, there is a way. I mean, at some point a bunch of smart folks got together and said "I wonder what the fishing is like 1/4 mile offshore instead of just off the beach..." And eventually....the pier was built.

The fish cleaning station may have to be relocated. Would that be an issue? Would that issue created be a bigger issue than what is currently occurring? Those are the real questions.

When my kids were swimming on the beach a couple years back the boys brought up 2 dead jacks (not cleaned) and then three the carcasses of several fish that had been cleaned (presumably on the pier). I cannot believe the condo owners want their guest finding dead and/or cleaned fish floating around on their beaches?

It can be done. Just like shark fishing....squeaky wheel gets the grease.