A group of 45 young pelicans rescued from the Gulf oil spill and nursed back to health in Miami are heading back home.
Workers at Miami's Pelican Harbor were busy early Friday morning getting the rehabbed birds ready for their trip back to Louisiana after spending the last month in South Florida getting cleaned up.
The brown pelicans, which were between 5 and 10 weeks old when they were found, were covered in oil and in danger of dying.
Last month, they were brought to the Pelican Harbor Seabird Station at 1279 Northeast 79th Street, for a specialized cleaning.
Early Thursday, they were loaded into crates and taken to Opa Locka Airport for a charter flight back to Louisiana.
"For us it is all about the release, the release day is just absolutely wonderful," said Wendy Fox, executive director of Pelican Harbor. "I would give anything to be out there in Louisiana to see them go, but it's just great that we've been able to be a part of it and help in some way."
