MYRTLE'S STORY
This is the story of Myrtle, an Australian Magpie fledgling who came to Madhi and I in September 1996.
Myrtle had somehow fallen from her nest on a night of torrential rain and high winds. She was found by some children on the way to school and taken to a teacher who told the kids to put her back in a tree so her parents could find her. This well meaning advice was of little use to Myrtle. Somehow she survived another night in that tree. If she moved she would fall to ground as she was too young to fly and her parents could thus not help her. In such a situation they would abandon her. The next day the
kids found her again, on the ground and again sodden after a rainy night. This time the teacher rang
Wild Life Information and Rescue Service (WIRES). Thus Myrtle came to us.
She had been without food for almost two days and it was another 24 hours before we could entice
her to eat. Not a good start for a young bird.
She was one of three young Magpies we raised that spring. When we released them after several
months of care two immediately flew away but Myrtle stayed around our house. For some reason the
local Magpies who had young of their own tolerated her. I was very pleased as Myrtle had always
been my favourite. She was a feisty and ferocious creature, aggressive and wilful as is the way of
many Magpies, but intensely related to us.
After several weeks we noticed that she had sores on her feet which did not heal. One day I managed
to recapture her so we could treat her cuts which we thought were probably the result of pecking by
other birds. Treatment for infections seemed to have no effect and then we noticed that caloused
lumps were forming around the lesions and swelling of the joints had set in. After much investigation
by Madhi involving discussions with vets and other WIRES people and searches on the internet we
decided she had gout. We treated her accordingly with herbs recommended by a herbalist
student in one of my Jungian classes.
Miraculously Myrtle's problem cleared up. It was only some time later that another Magpie was
brought to us with avian pox and we realised that Myrtle had had the pox too. By a slender thread the
treatment for infection we had first given her was the only thing which might have helped as birds with
natural resistance to avian pox can survive if infections don't invade the lesions.
However, by this time there were complications. Myrtle's stressful life with malnutrition followed by the
pox had taken its toll. Birds stressed in the ways Myrtle had been suffer feather problems and Myrtle
had lost all but four of her 12 or more tail feathers ( this had started before we recaptured her) and
slowly began to suffer breakages of wing feathers. She lost all of the primary flight feather in her right
wing and several in the left. She could fly but only just and with great labouring effort.
Myrtle was now unreleasable and we had to decide about her future. Fortunately a previous
experience with a bird we were told could not recover from such wing damage, and yet had, gave us
hope. We decide on an against the odds solution, to winter Myrtle in care and await her spring moult
to see if her new feather would grow out healthily.
In this another serendipitous event was important. An older male Magpie, a handsome and impressive
bird whom all the women (human) fell in love with came to us. We had named him Mhoram and he
was the perfect companion for Myrtle, a gentle and loving creature with a sort of natural authority and
powerful presence. He had an irreparably damaged wing and would either have to be euthenased or
kept in long term care.
Myrtle and Mhoran were with us through the autumn and into winter without incident. Then in late
winter we had to move house so the birds had to be cared for by some-one else while we were in
transition and long enough for me to dismantle and rebuild the aviary. Whilst this was done we visited
Myrtle and Mhoram, often daily, in their temporary home and eventually they came back to us.
Now, however it was fledgling season again and we had already noticed that the rapidly maturing
Myrtle's aggression was become a strong feature of her personality. Mhoram, once the proud old
man, had to bear her attacks and territorial posturing which he did with dignity but little choice due to
his limited flying ability. This, and another unexpected factor were to become serious concerns in the
near future.
With the new season's fledgling Magpies and Currawongs Myrtle was an unwilling and difficult
cohabitant, tolerating little contact and acting aggressively. Our local wild Magpies (nicknamed the
`Magwitches') were about as keen on Myrtle and Mhoram as she was on sharing her cage with
others. We expected some posturing as Magpies are known to be aggressively territorial, especially
at the time of mating and rearing of young but his was beyond our previous experience. The locals
made countless aggressive visits to the aviary, posturing on top of it and demonstrating in no
uncertain way their displeasure at having two adult Magpies in their territory.
Eventually we came to feel that this was unsatisfactory for all concerned and that we had to do
something. Fortunately we had become acquainted with people some 40 Km west of us who have a
bush block and large aviaries who were willing to house Myrtle and Mhoram until Myrtle's spring moult
which had still not begun in October.
Myrtle and Mhoram were duly moved to Clarence and things settled down at home. The fledglings
were left in peace and the locals took up making only cursory visits to check out the now baby
intruders. Hostilities would resume on that front later but that is another story.
We now visited Myrtle and Mhoram as often as possible - about fortnightly - and by Christmas
Myrtle's moult was finally under way. By the end of January we decided to release her. Throughout all
of this Myrtle had remained related to us and willing to hand feed, often taking food even when not
hungry clearly showing she still knew who we were.
The release of a captive bird is always a risk on many levels and so after so long with Myrtle we felt
both excitement and a tinge of grief. I, in particular had always felt a deep bond with Myrtle, Madhi
often called her my Myrtle, and this remained.
Given her chance Myrtle quickly left the aviary, unafraid in spite of her 16 month incarceration. She
took to the ground and hunted for food as is the way of Mapgies and seemed completely at ease.
Then she commenced calling a contact call. It seems she knew the local Magpies who at Clarence in
a larger territory seem far less aggressive and was willing to risk their knowledge of her release. They
came and seemed check her where-abouts and then left her to her own devices. We watched as she
slowly moved out of the house clearing and began to explore the surrounding bush without moving
out of sight. At first Madhi followed keeping and eye on her to see where she went but eventually she
disappeared in to seom dense undergrowth.
Now I followed her into the undergrowth there to watch her always just out of reach but aware of my
presence. Then as I sat watching her I noticed an arrangement of dried grass stems and blue and
green objects on the ground nearby - a Satin Bower Bird's bower!!! As I sat entranced, keeping an
eye on Myrtle and looking at the bower two young Bower Birds appeared. One, obviously the male,
began to posture and dance around and in and out of the bower whilst the other, female I presume,
watched from low in a nearby shrub. It is not uncommon in the Blue Mountains to see unattened
bowers but quite unusual to find one attended. I watched on and off for some 15 minutes, saw the
male move objects around and in and out of the bower, then eventually the two young Bower Birds
left. Myrtle remained nearby and I called Madhi to look at the bower and we took our leave of her,
moved by this gift which came with our parting from a beloved one.
Our friend told us that Myrtle stayed around on and off for a little over a week, given a period of grace
and adjustment it seems by the local `Maggies', and now she is gone to her life as a young Magpie
with what we see as a good chance of survival. -- End --
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