Jailbird: Jay gets stuck in Swindon nut dispenser
- Published
Rescue centre staff got the bird out by removing the peanuts and "gently pushing him through"
A jay had to be rescued from a bird feeder after getting itself jammed while trying to reach the peanuts.
A woman from Swindon brought the greedy bird into the Oak and Furrows Wildlife Rescue Centre near Cricklade after finding it trapped in her wire feeder.
Staff at the centre said they managed to get the "poor bird" out by removing the peanuts and "gently pushing him through" one end of the dispenser.
Animal carer Emma Elliott said he was "in shock" but recovering.
The jay, which is thought to have been wedged upside down in the wire feeder for a couple of hours, was brought into the Wiltshire centre last Friday.
But after carefully removing the top of the nut-filled cage and emptying out the peanuts, staff managed to extricate the ruffled bird.
The bird was thought to have been trapped for a couple of hours
The unfortunate bird had some superficial wounds
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"He was in shock and had some superficial wounds and some damage to his eye but he's recovering," said Ms Elliott.
'How on earth?'
Jays, according to the RSPB, external, can grow up to 35cm (14in) in length and boast a wingspan of 58cm (23in).
The centre said it has had "quite a few birds stuck in bird feeders" in the past but having such a large bird "squeezing" its way into a feeder was a "rarity".
"Jays love peanuts," Ms Elliott said.
"So we think when a squirrel took off the lid of the feeder, the jay just went in after them."
It is hoped the bird will be released back into the wild soon.
- Published5 April 2012
