Storm Leaves 200 Orphaned, Injured Animals In Need Of Shelter

Weekend storms washed hundreds of thousands of baby critters from their nests and smote soaring birds from the sky, prompting the humans of Houston to lend a hand to their fallen neighborhood wildlife during a break in the weather Sunday. Hundreds of crates and terrariums hold a multitude of orphaned animals at the center's office near Memorial Park, which serves as Houston's primary refuge for displaced wildlife. Throngs of new critters found shelter in a room with cracked turtles, oil-poisoned sea birds, sparrows with casts on their feet, baby birds begging for food and a woodpecker incessantly pounding on his crate wall. At the height of activity on Sunday morning, more than 20 volunteers came in on short notice for a surge of tasks to keep up with all the creatures coming in for care, Schmalz said.