Animal centre issues plea to hummingbird feeders after bird poisoned in Victoria, B.C.
Wildlife rescue centre MARS issued a statement on social media Thursday saying it had taken in a hummingbird that was suffering a fatal fungal infection after being fed honey, or another substance detrimental to her health.
The small bird was left unable to retract her tongue after fungal spores had germinated in her mouth, either on her tongue or in her gullet, a veterinary technician from the rescue centre said in the post. The bird will inevitably die because she can no longer feed.
The post requested those with hummingbird feeders use a specific sugar water mixture that will safely lure birds to a home, comprising only one-part white sugar to four parts water.
No organic, raw or brown sugar should be used, and no sugar substitutes like powdered sugar, honey, or artificial sugars and sweeteners. A concerning reminder for those with bird feeders to not use 'toxic red color liquids, such as kool aid,' was also issued.
Plain white sugar with water is a concoction most similar to a bird's natural diet of flower nectar, and thus should be the only option, the centre said.
Sugar water mixture should be changed every couple of days, especially during high temperatures as it will begin to ferment if left outside for too long.
'If you can't or won't do this, please do not put out a feeder at all,' the post advised.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
41 minutes ago
- CTV News
Addressing fear in Alberta's Mennonite community amid a measles outbreak
Tina Meggison, a community health rep for the Low German Mennonite community in southern Alberta, is seen with a sign in Low German at the Taber Community Health Clinic in Taber, Alta., Monday, July 28, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh Quelling the spread of measles involves immunization campaigns and public health protocols, but Tina Meggison says it also requires sitting down and having an open and honest conversation. That's what she's working to do within the Low German-speaking Mennonite community in Alberta. Meggison has more than a decade of professional — and a lifetime of personal — experience under her belt. Her team of community health representatives with Primary Care Alberta has seen a 25 per cent increase in demand for their services, which include accompanying patients to doctor's appointments and interpreting and answering questions in Low German, since the onset of an outbreak in March. That's about 350 calls per month on average, compared to 285 before the contagious disease spread to 1,656 people in the province. Meggison said the rise of people reaching out to the provincial health agency shows an interest to engage in the health-care system, which historically has not always been the case. The next step is taking that outstretched hand and placing knowledge into it. 'We can invite our families to start thinking from a different lens, or see things through a different lens, and maybe start to answer those questions.' Measles in Alberta Health-care hesitancy is rooted in fear for many Low German-speaking Mennonites. Meggison would know. She remembers a public health nurse rolling into her Mexican hometown of Durango on horse-and-buggy with a cooler of vaccines. The nurse told Meggison's mother to line up her 12 children in the yard, asked for their ages, and immunized them, without explanation. 'She didn't know what had been given to her kids. She didn't have the language skills to ask the questions,' Meggison said about her mother, whose primary language was Low German. Her family moved from Durango to Ontario when she was four years old, returned to Mexico more than a decade later, and then to Alberta in 2001. She started accompanying her mother to medical appointments and interpreting for her at 16 years old. 'Unbeknownst to me at that time, I was training for this work,' Meggison said, speaking from Lethbridge, near the Canadian Rocky Mountains. When she started this line of work in an official capacity, she estimates the Low German Mennonite population in Alberta was 15,000. That's since grown to approximately 25,000 to 30,000, based on her organization's last tally. But she says given the transient nature of the population, it's likely an underestimate. Many came from Mexico to work the land in Canada. They migrated to Ontario and Manitoba, and from there some made their way to Alberta. The government had offered religious and educational autonomy in exchange for agricultural labour in the 1870s. But that freedom never materialized, leading some to mistrust and question the government's authority, said Margarita Penner, a newcomer and Low German Mennonite family liaison with Barons-Eureka-Warner Family and Community Support Services based in Taber. Penner said Mennonites settled all over Alberta – from La Crete in the north to 40 Mile County in the south, on the border of Montana. Community health representatives dedicated to the Low German-speaking Mennonite community are currently only based in southern Alberta, with two full-timers based in Taber; Meggison in Lethbridge; and a roster of casuals. The demand has been so high that they boosted their availability from five to seven days a week. And now, Primary Care Alberta is hiring two more in the south, a third in the central health zone, and a fourth in the north. Southern Alberta has 945 measles cases while the north zone has 534, and central has 108. There, 68 per cent of kids had one dose and 56 per cent had two doses of the measles vaccine by age two in 2024, according to the province's figures for southern Alberta. Local breakdowns for the age group show 40 per cent two-dose measles vaccine coverage in Lethbridge, 29 per cent in Taber, and 71 per cent in Medicine Hat. Dr. Joan Robinson, a pediatric infectious diseases physician in Edmonton, said the rest of the province is not much better off. Alberta has an average immunization of 80 per cent with one dose, and 68 per cent with two doses for two-year-olds. Robinson says Alberta's low vaccination rates are due to myriad of factors, including a broader mistrust in the health-care system and a public shift towards misinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic. She says people began getting information on immunizations on social media, rather than from medical experts, and began believing that vaccines are harmful. She also says it would be helpful if the Alberta government debunked this belief. Though Edmonton and Calgary have lower case counts than the rest of the province, she points to particular areas within the urban cities that are not much better. 'The highest immunization rate in the whole province is barely over 80 per cent in Provost. It means that every community that measles is introduced into, there's a reasonable chance of more cases,' Robinson said. 'In order to prevent measles, we really do need community immunization rates as high as 95 per cent.' Run and hide Meggison said health education starts with identifying misinformation that heightens deeply entrenched fear. She holds focus groups for Low German communities that open the door to seemingly simple, yet controversy-riddled topics, such as, what is measles? What are its long-term consequences? What is in the vaccine that prevents it? 'If you don't know what it is you're preventing ... then what is the motivation to prevent it?' This is all done in Low German because many members of the community don't fluently speak or understand English, and don't read or write, making it challenging to access credible information, Meggison said. She shows them places they can source accurate facts, such as a YouTube channel where she hosts videos in Low German on health topics, with some gaining more than 1,000 views. Proudly, she recalls seeing a lightbulb go off for one woman who described an epiphany in one of her recent groups. 'She said, 'I can make decisions for my family, and it doesn't have to be public knowledge. I can make these decisions and not share it with my family members if they ask and I can just say that's my business,'' Meggison said, and described other women nodded in response to this passionate declaration, which strays far from their community's everybody-knows-everything way of life. 'You could see that there was a sense of freedom that came out of that group.' Her hope is that conversation will spread within the tight-knit community. Needle is neutral Alberta's health-care system has translation services, but the challenge is Low German is not common outside of the community. It holds shared cultural significance, which makes interpretation hard to come by and word choice paramount. Nely Penner, a community health representative in Taber, said the word 'vaccine' was an obvious roadblock to upping measles immunization in southern Alberta. 'When I think of the word vaccine in German, I just think of the history of immunization in Mexico,' Penner, who grew up in a Low German community in Mexico's northern Chihuahua region, said. Though Penner never personally experienced 'vaccine nurses' like Meggison did, similar stories were passed down from her parents and grandparents. 'People didn't understand what they were getting. It was fear-based. People would run and hide to not get these vaccines.' To mitigate the negative connotation, she suggested Alberta health providers use the word needle instead. 'Needle is just more neutral,' Penner said. Little changes like this can have a big impact in facilitating a health space that feels safer, acknowledges and validates feelings of mistrust, Penner said. 'When you're getting information, especially sensitive information, you want to be able to trust that person. And so that's such a huge part of what we do.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 4, 2025. Hannah Alberga, The Canadian Press Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Toronto's air quality is among the worst globally
Toronto and the GTA is under a special air quality statement due to wildfire smoke. Residents are encouraged to limit their time indoors. Toronto's air quality is currently among the worst worldwide, according to Swiss air quality tracker IQAir. As of around 8:15 a.m. on Monday, Toronto ranked as the third-most polluted major city globally, with Montreal coming in at fourth. A special air quality statement is in effect as smoke from forest fires continues to cloud Toronto's skies. Environment Canada says the wildfire smoke is anticipated to impact much of southern Ontario throughout the day, potentially going into Tuesday before dissipating. As of 6 a.m. on Monday, the air quality health index (AQHI) for downtown Toronto was at a six, which is a moderate risk, according to Air Quality Ontario. It is forecasted to reach a high of seven – a high risk, before tapering off to a five by the evening. 'Air quality and visibility due to wildfire smoke can fluctuate over short distances and can vary considerably from hour to hour,' the special air quality statement reads. Environment Canada urges limiting the amount of time spent outdoors and considering reducing or rescheduling any outdoor plans due to the smoke levels. Some common symptoms include eye, nose and throat irritation, headaches or a mild cough, the federal agency says. While it's not as common, Environment Canada says wheezing, chest pains or a severe cough are also potential symptoms. Young children, seniors, pregnant people, or people with an existing illness or chronic health condition are more vulnerable to the poor air quality. Environment Canada advises keeping the windows and doors closed as much as possible to prevent wildfire smoke from emanating into your home. If someone must spend time outdoors, Environment Canada advises wearing a well-fitting respirator-type mask to reduce exposure to fine particles in the smoke. Air quality expert Jed Kaplan warned of the effects of fine particulate matter from Canada's forest fires on CP24 on Sunday, noting it can penetrate deep into the lungs. 'It's especially bad to be outside under those kinds of smoky conditions,' Kaplan told CP24's Sijia Liu. 'If you've got air con or if you have an air purifier, be using it for sure. If you don't have a purifier, consider going to the library or mall, any place that's considered going to likely have clear air.' To keep up to date with Toronto's air quality health index, Torontonians can visit
CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
Toronto among worst air quality in the world as special statement continues
Toronto is among the most polluted cities in the world on Monday morning as the city remains under a special air quality statement for its third consecutive day. Environment Canada said smoke from forest fires is expected to continue to impact much of southern Ontario Monday and may persist into Tuesday before finally easing. "Air quality and visibility due to wildfire smoke can fluctuate over short distances and can vary considerably from hour to hour," said Environment Canada in a special air quality statement issued Monday morning. The statement is also in effect for Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, Markham, Burlington, Oakville, Halton Hills, Milton, Pickering and Oshawa. Toronto ranked third in a list of the world's most polluted cities as of Sunday morning, according to a global ranking by IQAir, a Swiss air quality technology company. Environment Canada is suggesting people limit time outdoors and consider rescheduling outdoor sports, activities, and events due to smoke levels. Young children, seniors, pregnant people, or people with an existing illness or chronic health condition are more vulnerable to the poor air quality. Symptoms can include eye, nose, and throat irritation, headaches, and a mild cough. While it's not as common, Environment Canada says wheezing, chest pains or a severe cough are also potential symptoms. The national weather agency is also advising people to keep their windows and doors closed and check in on others who live nearby who are more likely to be impacted by outdoor air pollution.
