Watch: Storks Were Bathed in Hovtashen

In the village of Hovtashen, Ararat province, storks covered in oil were bathed again today. According to shantnews.am, this process has been organized several times over the last month, resulting in the rescue of dozens of storks. However, this does not resolve the problem, as the number of storks affected by oil in 11 villages of the region reaches several hundred.

Few of the storks from Hovtashen welcome the dawn of the Ararat plain. The weight of their oil-coated bodies prevents the birds from standing on one leg. After bathing, some manage to reach their nests, while many have become friendlier with humans, wandering around pastures and streets like domesticated animals.

As it is known, around 300 storks have been covered in oil due to waste from fish farms contaminating the river. Their bodies have become heavy, making flight impossible, and they are unable to find food. Local villagers sounded the alarm, rallying environmentalists, the Ministry of Environment, the environmental inspection agency, and volunteers, all determined to clean the birds.

Today, those involved are already experienced and prepared. It is not so much the bathing that is difficult, but catching the birds. It turns out that the storks now recognize the village head's car and follow it with an appetite for fish, leading them into traps set up for them.

Everything is ready for the bath at the village mayor's premises, where 6 storks will have their feathers cleaned of oil, and efforts are being made to ease the birds' stress with music.

This solution, sent from the USA and lacking corrosive properties, dissolves the oily mass. It has been previously used to clean animals affected by oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico. In this case, however, it is also important to hold those responsible accountable; the minister’s adviser emphasizes that a criminal case has already been initiated.

After being bathed several times, a stork is freed, and it may regain its strength in about 10-15 days. During this period, there have also been losses, with the ministry recording two cases of stork fatalities, but it cannot be excluded that there have been many more.