Fire fighters rescued a seagull from a five-storey building in South Shields after it became entangled in netting.
Crews from Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service used a platform to reach the bird who was tangled up in netting at Barclays Bank’s King Street premises on Monday afternoon (April 11). The RSPCA was alerted by a member of the public and fortunately the gull managed to survive his ordeal without major injury.
RSPCA inspector Suzanne Edgar attended the incident and she says the bird (pictured) was fighting frantically to break free of the netting before he was reached by the firefighters. She says businesses using netting as a bird deterrent need to have it checked on a regular basis to ensure there are no holes through which gulls and other birds can slip through.
Read more: North East’s dedicated Violence Reduction Unit is set to invest over £7m to prevent crime
Suzanne said: "Luckily this gull is okay and he will be released back into the wild, but some of them are not so lucky. When there is wear and tear on netting it is very easy for birds to get in through a gap or hole and get stuck.”
Firefighters cut the netting from around the bird, who had a minor cut to his body, but thankfully had not broken any wings as he struggled to break free.
“He had been stuck there all morning and thankfully someone called the RSPCA,” added the RSPCA inspector. “The fire service deployed officers who specialise in animal rescues and they used a platform (see picture) to reach the gull.”
The bird is now in the care of Sunderland-based animal shelter Pawz for Thought, from where he will be released back into the wild. Suzanne added: “We get a lot of issues with netting trapping gulls in the South Shields, Sunderland and Newcastle areas."
“Most businesses do listen to us and do get their netting repaired. But at some premises birds keep on getting trapped.”
Each year hundreds of reports are made to the RSPCA about wild birds trapped in or behind netting, many incidents involving bird-deterrent netting. The RSPCA recommends that a system is in place to check for trapped birds and that netting is in good repair.
Wild birds, including pigeons and gulls, and their nests are protected under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981. If you see a live animal entangled in or trapped behind netting, please contact the RSPCA’s cruelty and advice helpline on 0300 1234 999.
Did you witness this incident? Let us know what you saw in the comments below...
