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For
the past two decades, the 62-year-old has cared for the colony
of around 100 brown pelicans that land in his village of
Guanimar in December to spend the winter months there before
heading back north in May.
"I feel very lonely when the pelicans leave," he said. "They are
basically like my children and I miss them every day."
Carrillo said he does actually have three (human) children - two
who live in the Isle of Youth and one who lives in a nearby
town. But he has not been able to see them much lately due to
the pandemic.
Brown pelicans - one of two species found in Cuba - are
typically gray-brown birds with long bills and a stretchy throat
pouch used for capturing fish.
"They may all look the same but in reality each one has
different characteristics," he said.
While the pelicans can feed themselves, Carrillo says he also
gathers leftovers from the village for them and treats them for
injuries caused by fishing hooks.
"I like to look after them because they are noble and
affectionate birds," he said, showing how they took food
straight from his hand as he stood in a small boat, before
hopping up into the nearby mangroves or onto the muddy coast.
Carrillo used to work in a state fishing company but ever since
it closed eight years ago, he has subsisted off odd jobs like
selling ice and remittances from cousins in the United States.
The pelicans though keep him busy for half the year as he tries
to feed them three to four times a day - no easy task in a
country going through its deepest economic crisis in decades and
suffering widespread shortages of basic goods.
"As long as I live, I will keep looking after them," he vowed.
(Reporting by Alexandre Meneghini and Nelson Acosta; Writing by
Sarah Marsh; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
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