Magpie caught in fishing line rescued from gumtree

Livingstone Shire Council has helped facilitate the rescue of a magpie tangled in fishing line in a large gumtree.

A community member raised the alarm Tuesday morning after they spotted the bird dangling upside down in a tree on council reserve at Mulambin.

An Ergon Energy crew working in the area responded to Council’s call for help and used a cherry picker to reach the magpie, which was stuck about 15 metres from the ground.

Council’s Natural Resource Management, Project Officer, John Wyland said the bird was taken to a local veterinary surgery before being picked up by the RSPCA.

“The poor juvenile magpie had a lot of fishing line tangled around its feet and legs and got caught on a branch when it landed in the tree,” Mr Wyland said.

“This demonstrates how important it is to dispose of your rubbish properly as nobody wants to see wildlife suffer in this way.

“Unfortunately the little one was trapped so high in the gumtree that we needed to organise a high lift machine to retrieve it.

“Council would like to extend a big thank you to the Ergon Energy workers who got to the scene quickly and helped rescue the bird.”

The magpie is expected to be released back at the same location with its parents by wildlife carers this week.