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The Animal Legal Defense Fund announced Thursday a reward of $5,000 for information on the person or people who operated a drone that crashed-landed in May into nesting grounds at the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in Huntington Beach.
About 3,000 elegant terns notable for their orange bills and black crests fled the reserve after the crash in mid-May. They left behind 1,500 to 2,000 unsavable eggs, the largest abandonment that scientists who work there could remember.
The operators of drones that fly over state wildlife preserves and disturb habitats can face charges for nest destruction and harassment of wildlife, according to Officer Nick Molsberry of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
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Terns Abandon 1,500 Eggs After Illegal Drone Crashes Near Their California Nesting Grounds People 1 hr ago © Provided by People California Department of Fish and Wildlife/AP/Shutterstock
California s Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve is suffering through one of its largest egg abandonments on record.
According to the
Los Angeles Times, on May 12, two drones were illegally flying over the reserve in Huntington Beach when one of the devices crashed in the area s wetlands. Unfortunately, the drone landed near the nesting grounds of 3,000 elegant terns, causing the birds to flee and abandon their eggs - about 1,500 eggs altogether. © California Department of Fish and Wildlife/AP/Shutterstock