Great Blue Heron Rescued After Being Tangled in Fishing Line
(OCSO, June 22, 2025)
Brandon Township, MI – It was not your typical distress call for the Oakland County Sheriff’s Search & Rescue Team on Sunday. SSRT, as the team is known, is often deployed on life and death calls where time is of the essence and a positive outcome is far from assured. But last Sunday’s call to Lake Louise in Brandon Township was a bit different. A life was saved. And as it turned out, it was that of a Great Blue Heron.
“Our search and rescue team has grown in both size and ability and as such are capable of rescues of all kinds,” Sheriff Michael Bouchard said. “In this case, they rescued the majestic Blue Heron, which we all enjoy watching throughout our state. I am proud of their efforts.”
The team was dispatched to a marshy location of the lake near Glass Road about 8:30 p.m. on the report of a distressed/injured crane. Nearby residents had heard the bird squawking and called the Sheriff’s Office. SSRT responded and deployed several rescue boats and reached the location near the shore. It was then they discovered that the crane was actually a Great Blue Heron that was hopelessly tangled in some fishing line.
“There is no way the bird was going to get out of there,” SSRT Lt. Brian Burwell said. “The fishing line was wrapped multiple times around its wings and there was no way it was getting loose. I’m sure the bird would have died there.”
SSRT has more than 30 members and expanded to include personnel from other area public safety agencies. Recently, SSRT added additional team members from Oakland County Animal Control, which was particularly helpful in Sunday’s rescue.
Animal Control Officers Ashley Tester and Aubrie Mausolf waded into thigh-deep water and placed a towel over the heron’s head to reduce its stress. They picked it up and spent the next several minutes untangling and cutting the fishing line.
Tester examined the bird and found no signs of any lacerations or any other injuries. The bird was placed on the shore for a final exam and then quickly hoped in the water and swam away. The fishing line and fishing lure that had been tangled in the tree was also removed to prevent any future incidents.
Burwell speculated that an errant cast landed in a tree branch and the angler was unable to free it. “This was definitely not your standard call,” Burwell said.
