Fourteen brown pelicans are recovering at the Wings Rescue Center after being injured in a severe hailstorm that struck the Coastal Bend on Nov. 1, damaging homes, vehicles, and wildlife habitats across the region.
The storm’s impact extended beyond human property. On Shamrock Island, a vital bird sanctuary between Corpus Christi and Port Aransas, thousands of avian species were caught in the storm. Among them were members of one of Texas’s largest brown pelican colonies, as well as rare and endangered species such as the white-faced ibis and reddish egret.
Following the storm, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department personnel and other wildlife responders rescued hundreds of injured birds. More than 400 were taken to the Amos Rehabilitation Keep (ARK) at the University of Texas Marine Science Institute, where staff performed triage, X-rays, and treated broken wings and legs…