After rehabilitation, a group of birds are free to roam the wild again. Pelican Harbor Seabird Station released five pelicans from Miami Beach on Thursday. Four of the birds had been injured by fishing hooks, and the other suffered from a respiratory illness. The pelicans could be seen eage r to spread their wings, and after just a few moments, the first took flight. The other four were huddled together and took a little longer, but they eventually followed suit. This release is a first for the seabird station. “For the very first time, we are doing a release of five pelicans; we’ve done three before, but never had five at the same time, so delighted to be here with some members of the community to do what we love the most, which is see these animals go back into the ecosystem here in Miami,” said Pelican Harbor Seabird Station Executive Director Chloe Chelz. Pelican Harbor has treated over 9,000 injured brown pelicans since 1980. ...read more read less