Caring for the Cormorants Is a Lot of Work
Caring for the baby seabirds is a delicate operation. As explained by AFP, between 30 and 50 volunteers feed, weigh, and clean the cormorants every day. Since the chicks are not swimming, they need to be hydrated manually. This is done by slipping tubes into their beaks and giving them water. That’s an incredible amount of work to care for 1,200 chicks.
The youngest chicks are separated from the older ones, which are kept in a large enclosure when they can stretch their wings and swim. Younger chicks are kept in a nursery section. Since they aren’t old enough to eat on their own, they’re hand-fed small pieces of sardine and given water with a syringe.
