🦅 CRiKEY MOSES LEGENDS! Welcome to Part 1 of 4 of our WHISTLING KITE RESCUE! 🦅 PART 1: IDENTIFICATION & ASSESSMENT 🩺 This beautiful bird of prey was found on the side of the road, with cars driving straight past it. Luckily, a wonderful mum and her three kids spotted it and had the courage to pull over and help! ❤️ Now, rescuing a bird of prey isn’t exactly a walk in the park! These things come equipped with razor-sharp talons that can do some serious damage! But this absolute legend of a mum threw her jumper over the kite, scooped it up and somehow managed to escape without a single scratch! 👏 Then there’s me… 🤣 Trying to assess the bird in front of the kids, looking all professional, when the bloody thing latched onto my thumb with its talons! 💀 I reckon those claws nearly touched my thumb bone! And let me tell you, trying not to unleash a vocabulary of profanities in front of three kids while a bird of prey is trying to remove your thumb is quite the challenge! A couple of VERY loud SHIT THE BEDS managed to slip out! 🤣🤣 Anyway, once we got our little mate settled, I made a few calls to some experienced bird carers to discuss what might be going on. We suspected a possible concussion or some type of illness. We gave it some probiotics, got some food into it and started monitoring its condition. But I wasn’t overly confident. 😔 This poor kite could barely stand, couldn’t perch properly and was in a pretty ordinary state. I was genuinely 50/50 on whether it would pull through. But wildlife rehabilitation can be full of surprises! ❤️ 🦅 Stay tuned for PART 2, because you’re going to want to see how this beautiful bird progresses! Whistling kites are magnificent Australian birds of prey, known for their distinctive whistling calls and incredible aerial displays. 👇 Who else has seen whistling kites cruising around their area? They’re absolute beauties! ONYA LEGENDS! 🦅❤️🐻 #WhistlingKite #WildlifeRescue #AustralianWildlife #BirdsOfPrey #WildlifeRehabilitation - @josh_neille