Well now I ve got a dilemma

Shortly after moving to a Norfolk village we had chickens and alsorts of animals, word got round we where the Doolittle family, and injured birds and animal found their way to us, courtesy of my ex on his daily walk with the dog.

A baby starling was brought to us by the postman as he didnt know what else to do with it.

We nurtured and fed, and mashed worms and alsorts for its ever open little mouth, it would sit on my shoulder or spend its days following me around.

We where on the point encouraging to fly, and on this particular day had had left him in his box in the kitchen but had failed to close kitchen door.

Poor little thing had decided to practice his skills and flew in to the bathroom, seen the closed window, flew at it, knocked himself out fell into the toilet ( ex never put seat down), and drowned.

Yes, they can be 'a pest' and we've had food taken out of our hands too but, as Bluebelle says, humans have created the problems.

Everyone was willing a baby seagull to struggle back to the nest in a Devon resort - but all saying that it would grow up to poo on cars and pinch food. But it was a baby and so determined.

MissAdventure

It's no good, Bluebelle, you're going to have to call the police and report him missing.
Oh, I hope he turns up safe.

This still makes me laugh every time I check the thread
Thanks for that MissA !

downtoearth that’s so sad ??

My one hopeful feeling about Stephen is I ve never seen his mum since he disappeared She is no longer on my roof I m going to live with the hope that the constant rain made her feel she had to get him and get him she did I cannot find any other explanation so I m sticking with that ?

I’m sorry there’s been no sight of Stephen, Bluebell but let’s hope his mum managed a great escape for him.

I also agree that it isn’t seagulls that are the problem, it’s the humans.

I’m another one sticking with the hope that his mum swooped down and got him??

I am convincing myself that mum came to the rescue. I used to love watching huge flocks of seagulls following the fishing boats. It is changes in society that have caused some gulls to change their behaviour. Humans have a lot to answer for. You tried Bluebelle and for that I applaud you. Only hope that there has been a happy, if unknown, ending.

The more I think about it, the more sure I've become that his mum did a rescue mission when you were safely out of the way, OP.
While one-finger typing this I've just listened to David Attenborough's Tweet of the Day. He was talking about Emperor Penguins and their ability to recognise their chick's tweet out of hundreds....
I wonder if grown-up Stephen will bring his kiddies to show them off to his foster mum in time?

@Bluebelle, you right, but in Exeter, at least half an hour drive from the nearest beach, they are a real problem, albeit man-made, but a problem nonetheless. When I try and feed the Swans or Ducks or Geese on the River Exe, the gulls attack with impunity. I don't know what the answer is? Perhaps when we get our fishing rights back, they will revert to their natural environment? Lets hope so.

We re not getting any fishing back evie don’t hold your breathe
Any animal that is a problem has been made a problem by human beings if the seagulls didn’t have filthy people leaving food all over the streets they wouldn’t be so problematic
When did this strange phenomena of having to eat in the streets happen ....when I was growing up it was considered very rude and in poor taste to eat in the street now no one can walk out the front door without having food or drink in their hand I live one minute from the sea and I m lying listening to them now all screeching and calling to each other they re all waking up now I wonder what they are saying
I didn’t try to save Stephen because he was a seagull but because he was a little chap in trouble I just hope he’s ok but I ll never know

Let's hope Stephen has been rescued by mom. It's instinctive to save any living creature and you did your best. I hope another bird doesn't get I frequently have a woodpigeon fly into my patio window when closed, leaving a very good imprint of itself on the window, if ever the door was open and it flew into me I would be no more. The gardens full of them since new houses were built on woodland near by, the lawns have suffered too. They've got to go some where though.

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202008/medium-993253-529c3be3-cdfe-45af-bc15-404b6184c66f.jpeg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202008/medium-428102-fa7b5c98-0d06-432a-9e23-e86bcfd8f484.jpeg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202008/medium-242630-f0687fff-09dd-4cc8-b314-52edc18f8146.jpeg

I know you will never believe this but lying in bed playing sudoku this am I heard a familiar shuffling noise in my bedroom fireplace
Yes you know what’s coming don’t you I removed the Fireplace trapdoor and .......
There was a tail taking up the whole of the opening it was a much bigger one this time and my old heart was pounding I waited a bit but there was no chance of it getting itself down it couldn’t move or see where it was so it was back to the gardening gloves and hand up the opening and gently grabbed its body and pulled It was difficult but eventually it plopped out with a big old swark sat on the floor obviously unable to fly

I swear it’s Stupid Steven back again

Anyway I put him on my window sill he fluffed his wings waggled his stumpy tail and dropped straight onto the flat roof
below
He’s wandering around the flat roof now and every now and then he ll try and fly with those big old wings flapping up and down and his feet jumping an inch off the roof

Nothing more I can do now

Hi bluebelle,
Looks like he is ready to fly, and just popped in to say thank you.!

It’s funny I m watching him now he can’t quite fly he’s jumping up and down on the roof flapping his wings Violently but going no where he just can’t quite get the hang of it ....but the cavalry has arrived...... mum has found him

He is obviously a troublesome teenager this one !

I wonder if there’s a YouTube video on ‘Learning to Fly’ that Stephen could watch?! ??

Lovely that you - and we! - now know that he’s survived! ????

Well done for rescuing Stephen again! Are you thinking of having a grille put over your chimney? We get lots of pigeons dancing on our bungalow roof and cooing to us but they can't get down. On the subject of birds, we have some really daft crows in this village. In the spring they tried to build a nest up under the eaves of the church roof. I watched them bringing large twigs and pushing them at the wall. They did it again and again. There was no way they would stay there and they all fell in a heap. They always brought fresh twigs, why didn't they see what was happening and try somewhere else, or pick up the ones they had just dropped? I collected them all up eventually so we could cut the grass. It took me ages.

Oh my goodness Bluebelle!!

Lovely that we know he has survived,can’t wait to tell DGD but poor old Stephen falling down the chimney again.

I think you have a friend for life!

Glad it all resolved itself. In the village where I live we have a problem with jackdaws building nests in chimneys and youngsters falling down the flues. The other problem is many flues are used to vent flue gasses for oil fired furnaces so not a healthy option for nesting. Anyway the cheap fix is to just stretch some galvanized steel mesh over the chimney pot. If I put a baby jackdaw on my shed roof they always jump down into the garden straight away but the parents find them OK and the extended jackdaw family mobs the local cats and drives them off.

I can’t get it capped Ruby or meshed stuart I live in a three storey house it costs hundreds to have scaffolding put up for a five minute job I m afraid they have to visit me like Alice through the looking glass but hopefully over the next few days Stephen (or sibling) will be able to take off it’s very funny to watch he flaps his wings and jumps up and down but can’t quite manage the take off hopefully now mum knows he’s there she ll feed him because he’s beyond my reach now and within a few days he should fly
They usually fly first week of August

It’s very lucky he keeps coming down that chimney pot as my other rooms are blocked off at the actual fireplace so i wouldn’t be able to save him and he d die so he’s a lucky chap in a way
There is only one family up there so the chances of it being the same Stephen are high ???

He loves you.
You're his surrogate Mummy.

My goodness who'd have thought that would happen!
If it is stupid Stephen, he really isnt is he (stupid I.mean!)?
The clever lad knows which side his bread is buttered, would say
Enjoy him whilst he stays.
Lovely thread BlueBell thank you for the update.

Oh my goodness, what are the chances! Silly Stephen.

Well, hopefully in a week or two he'll be off, to learn from his Mum how to nick chips. Just wish she'd teach him to avoid open chimneys.

He may come back again, he seems fond of you Bluebelle.

Haha
well he s had some pilchards but he’s calling for his mum a lot I hope his big old wings can work out what to do sooner rather than later because he’s not so easy to feed on the flat roof as it joins on to next doors garage so he can disappear over the top out of sight