Fred is one of our very experienced bird carers. He has been involved in Wildlife Rescue for many years. This is one of his stories - "I was brought a Nankeen Night Heron from Holloways Beach by a fisherman who said that the bird had swallowed his baited hook.

I took the bird to a vet who x-rayed the bird and discovered the hook had indeed been swallowed. The vet was willing to perform the operation to remove the hook. She made an incision in its neck and successfully extracted the hook which fortunately had not passed down far enough to cause any real damage.

The wound was dressed and I took the bird home and cared for it for about a week until the wound began to heal. A return visit to the vet confirmed that all was well and release was recommended.

I telephoned the fisherman who had found the bird and he showed me where the accident had occurred. We stood on the shore of the wetland and released the relieved bird into his natural habitat. It flew a short distance away to an overhanging branch where it sat for a few minutes getting its bearings. Then it flew off happy , I’m sure, to be free."

Submitted 21/07/2009 by Fred H