A heron flew high in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday after veterinarians saved it from a terrible fate. The bird had a plastic cup stuck to its neck, making it hard to eat and breathe. When they rescued it, many people in Brazil became upset about how plastic pollution harms animals in the city known for its beautiful mountains and beaches.
As the heron was released from its cage, it paused, looking around before taking off into the sky, its wings spread wide as it soared over the river in a neighborhood called Recreio dos Bandeirantes. “I hope it doesn’t find any more plastic on its journey,” said Jeferson Pires, a vet who spotted the heron and shared its story on social media.
Before it was rescued, the logo of a popular drink was easy to see on the cup stuck to the heron’s neck. Videos showed the bird trying hard to remove the cup with its orange beak. Environmentalist Isabelle de Loys said, “This highlights how plastic affects wildlife.”
The cup blocked the heron from eating, which could have led to starvation in just days without surgery. At one point, the heron even vomited a fish it couldn’t swallow because of the cup. Pires explained that injuries on the bird’s neck were likely from its attempts to eat, leaving it a bit underweight.
Thanks to Pires’ social media posts, the heron became a symbol for environmental awareness, receiving attention from many news outlets in Brazil and sparking anger over the effects of single-use plastics.
After the cup was removed, Pires was excited to let the heron go back to its home in the wild. “We had no reason to keep her,” he said. This bird, called a Cocoi heron, is the largest heron species in Latin America and can weigh up to 3 kg (7 lbs) with wings about 40 cm (16 inches) long.
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