While cruising down the beach looking at the man of wars, we noticed a seagull on the beach that seemed unable to fly. Noting that it had something reflective on its flank, we decided to approach it and see if we could help. We were shocked to see a giant fishing lure attached to the poor bird.
The lure had three barbed hooks on it. Two of the hooks had lodged in the right wing of the gull, and apparently, as it had tried to remove the lure, a third hook had caught on the bird's nares, literally joining its wing to its beak.

As the gull tried to run away from us, it ran into the surf. That was a stroke of luck for us and the bird, because it was helpless in the waves, which gave us the few seconds necessary to capture it. We grabbed the bird, and worked very carefully for about 15 minutes to remove the two hooks that had lodged in its wing. Not wanting to shred the bird's flesh or break the fragile bones in its wing, I worked very carefully to back the barbed hook out through the hole it had made. After removing the hooks from the wing, I then slowly backed the hook out through its nostrils. I was afraid the bird's wing was broken or that it's beak was damaged, but as soon as we removed all the hooks, the bird squawked and flew away. We felt very proud of ourselves.

Note the small tuft of feather and flesh on the middle hook of the lure.
I understand that fishermen have a right to fish the waters off the coast of Florida. However, I wish there were some way we could make it safer for the rest of the animals in the area. If we hadn't been able to catch and save the bird, it surely would've died. Moreover, if I'd stepped on this massive lure, I would've been in great pain.