Protected Grey Heron Found Shot And Left To Die

Story By: Joseph GolderSub-EditorJoseph Golder, Agency: Newsflash

This is the six-week-old grey heron that was found by a passerby shot and left to die with its wing injured and a bullet still in its body.

The incident took place in Molln, a municipality in the district of Kirchdorf an der Krems in the Austrian state of Upper Austria.

According to Austrian newspaper Heute, the bird was not moving but it was alive. The passerby, an unnamed man, took the injured bird to animal refuge Tierparadies Schabenreith in Steinbach am Ziehberg.

Tierparadies Schabenreith, Hofner/Newsflash

There it was examined by veterinarian Ursula Kimberger-Dorninger, who determined that its left wing had been hit and a bullet was still in its body, so it had to be operated on.

Heute report that grey herons (Ardea cinerea) are a protected species all year round but they are often targeted as they are perceived as a “fishing pest”. But they by no means feed exclusively on fish, but also eat amphibians, reptiles, insects and small mammals.

It was unclear whether the bird would survive as it was in severe pain and shock and was refusing to eat.

Tierparadies Schabenreith, Hofner/Newsflash

But Newsflash contacted Tierparadies Schabenreith, who said that “the heron is doing well and is recovering very well. He is eating a lot of fish.”

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