Hi Everyone
Rescues were steady in March with a total of 37 birds attended.
Caller Jodie spotted this ibis limping along the Labrador foreshore. She did the right thing and stayed with the bird, keeping it in sight until I could get there. In order to catch a ‘flight capable’ bird the catcher first has to know where the birds is. Doesn’t matter how capable you are .… no bird = no catch. Having someone stay and keep an eye on the creature, while deterring people from approaching, is crucial to success. This ibis was caught quickly, disentangled, then set free. I like to get them back into the air quickly so they can fulfil the sacred mission of all ibis … stealing snaggers off the nearest barbie! 
Jodie called me about another ibis that hangs around Main Beach Tourist Park, also entangled. However, this is an entirely different proposition because I missed that bird the first time I attempted to catch it. Ibis are very aware of what’s going on around them. The bird now recognises me and bails as soon as I arrive. My best chance of catching it is with a ‘drive by’ and shooting a net over it. Not easy to organise in a caravan park during school hols!
Purple swamp hens are such lovely little creatures. Why anyone would cast a fishing lure at one is beyond me, but that’s what happened to this little fellow. By the time I was called to catch and help the bird infection had set into the bone and the hospital had to put him to sleep. Pisser.
Not much joy either for this bush-stone curlew (at right). She had a broken wing. Some species, like ducks, can still do well with a broken wing, as long as it’s minor. That’s because waterbirds can escape dogs, cats and people by heading into the water. Not so for curlews. Left to fend for herself this bird was vulnerable and would have slowly starved, assuming infection didn’t claim her first. Catching birds to have them put to sleep is not a part of the job I enjoy, but it has to be done.
This young swan had better luck. Caller Sarah, who lives on the lake in Lae Dr, Coombabah, noticed the bird sitting in the same place all morning. On closer inspection she saw a big, long shank hook
coming from its mouth. The hook had a meter of line attached with a large white float on the other end, meaning the idiot who hooked the bird knew, but did nothing to get it help.
The mind boggles!
I caught the swan and rushed her to Currumbin Wildlife Hospital where vet Andrew anaesthetise her before pushing the hook through to get at the barb. With the barb off he was able to back out the shank of the hook. Her little face was swollen and no doubt very painful, but after a week of treatment ‘Iggy’ was good to go and returned to the lake.
Mystery surrounding the fate of five very sick pelicans that I rescued from Southlake, Robina over the past couple of months has finally been solved after getting results back from tests done on bird number five. Thus far, all but bird number four have died from the illness which presents as botulism but has a MUCH higher death rate.
Some months before there had been interference with a swan on the lake and I was worried that person mightbe interfering with the pelis too. Not so apparently. Tests showed that bird five had botulism, but it also had a heart condition. This condition has been observed in a flock of pelis living in Eagleby, just south of Brisbane. More than twenty of those birds have died. Nobody knows what’s causing this condition but I really hope we’ve seen the last of it.
Two maggies also did very well this month, thanks to Dr. Kevin at the Gold Coast Vet Surgery and carer Jenny in Nerang. They were Neil (at left) and Trixie. Both had severe leg or foot injuries which normally would have seen them put to sleep. However, both recovered and were released back where they were caught.
Tyson and Trisha, the resident pair of swans on Miami Lake, are just two weeks away from hatching their seven eggs. What a wonderful treat it will be for local residents to have a bunch of new cygnets on the lake. These birds do get into a lot of strife but fortunately locals keep an eye out for hooks, entanglements and other injuries and call me at the first sign of trouble.
As always, a BIG thank you to all donors. WBRGC fills a unique niche being the only full time rescue service in the entire Gold Coast region that specialises in the capture of ‘fight capable’ birds. Without your support I couldn’t offer this seven days a week service, which is relied upon so heavily by the RSPCA, Currumbin Wildlife Hospital, Wildcare and countless members of the public.
Rowley
President, WBRGC