Supporter eNews

Successful rescue stands the test of time!

Friday, July 29, 2022

When a Grey-headed, underweight flying fox was rescued from a Newcastle school last month, it felt like a chance encounter with an old friend for WIRES volunteers on the Mid-North coast. The fact the flying-fox was banded led to an investigation, which revealed he’d been released by WIRES in 2004!

Thanks to some meticulous record-keeping by the branch, it was discovered that a tiny three-week-old flying fox pup had come into care with WIRES Mid North-Coast in November 2003. He was nicknamed ‘Belgarion’ and buddied up with two other orphans. The trio thrived and when old enough were transferred to the WIRES Bellingen bat creche to prepare for life in the wild.

The news of his rescue almost 19 years later has thrilled the local WIRES volunteers, especially his carer Stephen, who fondly remembers Belgarion as being one of the very first pups in his care. Belgarion is now having a few weeks rest and rehabilitation to prepare for his second release.

It is a credit to our dedicated volunteers that orphans like Belgarion not only survive but live such long and valuable lives pollinating our native flora, particularly following the Black Summer bushfires. In the words of WIRES Mid-North Coast volunteer Denise; “It is stories like these that makes all the rescues and rehabilitation we do so very rewarding.”

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