Rescuers rushed to the aid of a young starling stuck in the bottom of a fat ball bird feeder in a garden in Uckfield (18th June 2014). Volunteers from East Sussex Wildlife Rescue and Ambulance Service (WRAS), attended to the bird found in a rear garden on New Town, Uckfield.
"The bird was well caught up, its head, wings and legs were sticking through different holes in the feeder. We had to use bolt cutters to cut the wire which was quite thick as ordinary wire cutters were not strong enough. We were concerned that the bird was at a strange angle and had been struggling for some time. It is important that such casualties are not cut free and just released as they often have injuries which need treating."
The bird has now named "Welbeck" after the Manchester United striker, who recently had thigh problems following a training session at England's Urca military base headquarters.
He is currently at East Sussex WRAS's Casualty Care Centre at Whitesmith, where he has been treated for some bruising and injuries to his thigh, back and wings.
"We hope that this ordeal has not been too traumatic for Welbeck and hope that he will make a full recovery" added Trevor.
WRAS is urging people who feed birds to check that their feeders are hygienic and safe and to replace any which are old and in need of repair. “Every year we get calls to incidents like this and its always from people who clearly care about the wildlife visiting their gardens. It can be very distressing. So we are urging everyone to go outside and check their feeders and for the sake of the wildlife, replace or fix any which have missing lids or are damaged, and to give them a clean at the same time.”
East Sussex WRAS is funded by donations and is only able to attend such incidents thanks to kind and generous donations from the public. To make a donation please go to our donation page or ring 01825 873003 .
Press contact:
Trevor Weeks MBE - East Sussex WRAS: 01825 873003 or 07931 523958
