W.R.E.N. VOLUNTEERS TO THE RESCUE2024 September 14
The call came in on the Cedar Key Bird Rescue Hotline. Within minutes, volunteer James Custer was leading a group of W.R.E.N Bird Rescuers on a recent Sunay afternoon.
A small bird had become ensnared in filament at the top of a very tall palm tree. His feet were tangled, causing him to helplessly hang upside down, wings frantically flapping in an attempt to right himself. He was screaming his distress.
People going by in golfcarts stopped to look and to offer help. But how could we reach him?
The W.R.E.N. team thought first of a bucket truck so a rescuer could be lifted carefully to the top of the tree. But it was Sunday. No businesses with bucket trucks were available.
Neither was a fire truck available for this endeavor. No other ladder could reach that height.
But the balcony of a nearby condo just might offer a solution…
So with an explanation ready, we knocked on the door of the condo, not knowing who might answer or if he would be willing to help.
So with an explanation ready, we knocked on the door of the condo, not knowing who might answer or if he would be willing to help.
But we were in luck!
The resident invited us in, willing to let the W.R.E.N. team of rescuers traipse though his condo to his balcony to assess the possibility of reaching the bird, still many feet away.
While the rest of the team, and even people driving by, were making calls and thinking of ways to get to the bird, James Custer simply took action!
James wandered away for a few minutes, returning with a 20-foot pvc pole; he had attached a very soft “hook” to the tip of it.
Back on the balcony, James was assisted by the condo resident, guiding him to get a clear view and a clean path to rescue the tiny bird
“A little to the left, James, yes, you’ve got him!”
With amazing dexterity and gentleness, James maneuvered the wobbling 20-foor pole into place and cautiously lifted the dangling bird up off of the snagging palm frond.
As the tiny bird righted itself, we held our breaths.
As the tiny bird righted itself, we held our breaths.
Then he flew from the tree top, uninjured, and the shouts came up from the people in the golfcarts and the others standing nearby. “Hooray! Hooray!”
We all felt as if we had somehow been part of a longshot rescue.
But we all also clearly knew that it was truly the ingenuity of James Custer, with a 20-foot pole, and a gentle hook.
W.R.E.N Wildlife Rehabilitation & Education Network welcomes new volunteers. Text 239-253-8824 to learn more.
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