Stork struggles with plastic ring around beak for a week, rescued in Delhi

Photos of a stork with a plastic ring stuck around its beak circulated in social media last week and garnered international attention. The photo taken by bird enthusiast Manoj Nair last Thursday featured the stork on the wetlands of Gurgaon with a plastic ring stuck around its beak.

Due to the ring, the bird was unable to eat and drink anything for one week. State wildlife officials and bird watchers quickly managed to locate the stork and had the ring removed. Reportedly, the stork, even though dehydrated, was in a pretty good condition.

According to a 2016 report, 8 million metric tons of plastic is washed off into the ocean every year. Earlier this month, a whale was found dead near Thailand. During post-mortem, 80 plastic bags were found inside its stomach.