Cable tie on petrel

[Alan Tennyson]

I picked up a rotten white-chinned petrel at Otaki yesterday that had a cable tie on its leg. The cable tie didn't seem to have caused any obvious physical damage to the bird. I'm wondering why someone would have done this?

[Ian McLean]

Hello Alan
That's very unusual to see & I cannot imagine why someone would attach the cable tie to it !
Unfortunately, there is sometimes a bit of a sadistic element in the behaviour of some people & I have seen pictures of sparrowhawks snared with cable ties. There is also sometimes an element of vanity with people painting & tying balloons or streamers to live birds. Attached is a picture of a collared dove from Katikati, where someone has often trapped these wild doves & then paints them for their pleasure. Complete animal cruelty of course that should not be tolerated.
Cheers
Ian McLean

[lloydesler]

Could have been to mark the dead bird as having been counted on a beach patrol and left to see how long the body remains visible. It's been done before with different forms of tagging.

[Alan Tennyson]

I did wonder about that Lloyd but the bird was on the newest tideline, so I think that's unlikely in this case.