The following story was shared with us by Buz Marthaler at the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Northern Utah.
An adult pie-billed grebe arrived at the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Northern Utah (WRCNU) after having landed on a road. Grebes often mistake wet asphalt for water and, once grounded, they are unable to take flight again.
Under normal conditions, you only see grebes swimming or in the air as they fly from one location to another. A grebe’s legs are set so far to the rear of their body that they cannot walk on dry land and must literally “run” on the water surface with wings flapping to get airborne. Finding grebes stranded on land is a very common situation every fall/winter season.
With all other signs showing this grebe was in good condition, we administered a combination of EmerAid Intensive Care Carnivore and Piscivore for the next four days until the weather permitted her successful release.