A hornbill chick in west India became entangled in a plastic string while trying to fly out of its nest and had to be rescued by wildlife volunteers.
Kind rescuer saves hornbill chick which almost strangled itself in plastic nest material
A hornbill chick in west India became entangled in a plastic string while trying to fly out of its nest and had to be rescued by wildlife volunteers.
The chick came from a nest built by a great hornbill bird on a tall tree in Pune, Maharashtra, which included plastic strings in its building material.
The chick, which had grown up a bit, tried to fly on its own for the first time.
As it leapt, a few loose plastic strings in the nest got entangled with its feet.
The bird struggled to free itself only to get tightly entwined with the plastic strings all over its body.
On March 4, residents of a nearby apartment saw the bird dangling from the nest with plastic strings attached to its neck like a noose.
They brought it down with the help of a bamboo pole but were afraid to approach the chick due to its sharp beak.
Animal rescuer Saidas Kusal was called and went to the spot to help the bird.
Holding the bird gently, he removed a few strings patiently and then snipped off the rest with a scissor.
As Kusal could not find the chick's mother, there was no chance of reuniting the bird with its parent.
As it was also slightly injured, and too young to survive on its own, the bird was turned over to an animal rehabilitation centre, where it will be treated for its injuries and released in the wild later.
Saidas said: “The bird was stressed, but luckily it did not bite.”