Ken Torkelson
Ken Torkelson
act hoping knows senseless step witnessed
We're hoping someone who witnessed this senseless act or knows who is responsible will step forward.
chick eggs nest per
There are usually two eggs per nest but usually only one chick survives.
learn manage
We have to learn more about them before we can effectively manage the species.
couple general problem problems
Once we have that (census), we will know if there is a problem with pelicans in general or if there are problems at just a couple of colonies.
areas fish found holds normally obvious places seems water
Anything that holds water and fish seems have found a pelican, and even places that don't, ... It's obvious that they are all over the place in areas you wouldn't normally see them.
believe claiming colonies couple past percent west
At colonies we have been monitoring, we believe West Nile is claiming 50 to 60 percent of the young for past couple of years.
proposal
It's only a proposal at this point. There are a lot of hurdles.
bird endangered game species
They are not a game bird and they're not on the endangered species list.
believes biologist drastic unless
I would say that every biologist believes they will come back, as they have for over 100 years, unless something drastic happens.
birds close holding indication
Some of the birds holding pretty close to their nests, so that's and indication they probably are.
although caused certainly last virus west year
The abandonment of 2004 has yet to be explained, satisfactorily. What caused the die-off last year is still uncertain, although the West Nile virus certainly has been found, especially in the young chicks.