Submitted by Steve on 16:27, 28th Jul, 2014 | 0

On Thursday last week the GSPCA were called out to rescue a Little Egret in St Sampsons.

Porridge as the pretty white bird is called is believed to be a young bird that could not fly.  He was found in the grounds of the prison and is recuperating at the Shelter.

Over the weekend we tried a release but Porridge decided he wasn't quite fit enough to go.

Today Porridge has been placed on one of our pools and we are hoping to get him back to the wild soon.Little Egret at the GSPCA in Guernsey

Yvonne Chauvel Senior Animal Care Assistant said "Our Ambulance Collection Officer Geoff George rescued him last week and he is eating and resting well."

"We rarely see Little Egrets at the GSPCA, but Porridge as we've named him is now on one of our rehabilitation pools and we hope to get him back to the wild as soon as he is fit enough."

Steve Byrne GSPCA Manager said "The start of 2014 with all of the bad weather was a really hard start for our sea birds with thousands killed and injured."

"We were kept very busy at the GSPCA with birds affected by the bad weather at the beginning of the year, but more recently it has been injured and young hedgehogs as well as fledglings."

"If you find a sick or injured animal or bird in Guernsey please call us on 01481 257261 or check out our website for more details."

Please click here for wildlife advice.

To sponsor an animal pen to help birds like Porridge please click here.

Little Egret Facts

The little egret is a small white heron with attractive white plumes on crest, back and chest, black legs and bill and yellow feet. It first appeared in the UK in significant numbers in 1989 and first bred in Dorset in 1996. Its colonization followed naturally from a range expansion intro western and northern France in previous decades. It is now at home on numerous south coast sites, both as a breeding species and as a winter visitor. It is included on the Amber List as a rare breeding species. 

The Latin name is Egretta garzetta and the family the Little Egret is from is Bitterns and herons (Ardeidae). A recent colonist to the UK, it is most common along the south and east coasts of England, and in Wales. The estuaries of Devon and Cornwall, Poole Harbour and Chichester Harbour hold some of the largest concentrations and they are also common in East Anglia.

They are an increasingly common sight in inland areas too and are gradually increasing their range northwards here. You can see them all year round, although numbers increase in autumn and winter as birds arrive from the Continent. They eat fish and there are an estimated 660-740 pairs is Summer in the UK and 4,500 birds in the Winter.

We are currently looking for teams to register and get involved with the Giant Animal Welfare Mascot It's a Knockout Race on Sunday 14th September. For details please click here.

GSPCA Guernsey Pie and Mash Bingo Bash at Market Bistro 

To download a brochure all about the Animal Welfare Seafront Sunday please

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By post cheques payable to 'GSPCA' - GSPCA, Rue des Truchots, St Andrews, Guernsey, GY6 8UD

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