Beth Ragan (BSc, SVN) & Tory Hayward (BA, MA, SoA)
Species: Golden Oriole (Oriolus oriolus)
UK Birds of Conservation Concern: 4 (Red list)
IUCN Red List: Least concern
In May 2021, a female Golden Oriole was found grounded in Melton Mowbray. She was taken to a well-respected RCVS recognised specialist in zoo and wildlife medicine whom we consult for complex avian cases, who deemed her uninjured, and was passed to Feline and Wildlife Rescue Nottingham (FAW), for rehabilitation. I, Beth, had knowledge of other Oriole species from previously working at Chester Zoo and therefore was entrusted with the task. On first presentation she was incredibly stressed, open-beak breathing, wings splayed, had a rapid respiratory rate and unable to perch. After being placed in a safe enclosure, a WIFI CCTV camera was set up. As soon as my presence was lifted, the open beak breathing stopped, she was stood up and after several minutes perched up.
Cameras
Stress can be defined as a state of real or perceived threat to homeostasis that may challenge an organism’s well-being (Joseph and Whirledge, 2017). The negative effects of human-presence stress are widely documented in many species (Davey, 2007; Dertien et al., 2021). A study by Dertien et al., (2021) discovered that birds change their behaviour when people are within 100 metres, and some birds of prey species 400 meters. Escape responses require acute activation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis, which regulates the circulating concentrations of corticosteroid hormones which in turn regulates energy allocation for flight (Abolins-Abols et al., 2016; Muvhali et al., 2018). In a rehabilitation setting, carer proximity can have a huge effect on behaviour. As unable to escape, as confined in an enclosure or restrained, physiological responses are noted. Chronic activation of the HPA leads to negative effects of immunity, reproduction, behaviour, development, metabolic activities and even death (Angelier et al., 2017; Lin et al., 2021). The symptoms displayed by the Golden Oriole in human presence included symptoms that can suggest respiratory distress, bacterial, viral, or fungal infections and/or parasite burdens (Hoppes, 2015; Sulivan, 2021). However, as these symptoms were not present with no human presence, we were led to believe it was due to stress.
The importance and implications of camera monitoring have been wildly researched in zoological settings along with wildlife (Wearn and Glover-Kapfer, 2019; Fazio et al., 2020). The presence of a camera allows around the clock observations in real time (the camera I used is linked to an app on my mobile phone). The ability to record observations and reduction in human presence allows the carer to obtain a more rounded view of their behaviour (Muvhali et al., 2018). In the following days, the Oriole was seen on the camera eating, perching, flying and that faecal components were now being passed. However, if I stepped in the room to add fresh food the bird would quickly drop to the floor of the enclosure and repeat the previous signs.
Through the monitoring of her behaviour and initial lack of faecal components in her eliminations, it was suggested that low energy reserves could explain its inability to escape human contact when first found (Jiang and Moller, 2017; Lin et al., 2021). Golden Orioles migrate from Africa to breeding grounds in Britain, Spain, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Ukraine, Turkey and other European countries (BirdLife, 2021). Therefore, it is likely she had struggled to find food over her long journey and had been unable to allocate energy to an escape response. In the UK, they are very rare (Schedule 1, Red Listed), and in our county specifically even rarer. There have only been 29 recorded sightings of this bird in Nottinghamshire over the past 160 years.
After being provided with the right diet with reduced human-contact the Golden Oriole was then released only three days after entering FAWR’s care. Without the camera she may have been subjected to more invasive tests to determine the nature of the symptoms she was displaying. This would have increased her stress levels and may have had detrimental effects on her health. Cameras have become increasingly affordable and accessible to the general public (Brown and Gehrt, 2009). They can be bought online for as little as £20 but range into the hundreds depending on what is required. At FAWR we use cameras in all aspects of our rehabilitation. Alongside the advantages to reducing stress, it can also have a massive effect on the effect of human contact in hand-rearing wild species, such as decreased fear of humans which may lead to problems on release (Feenders and Bateson, 2011).
Figure 1: Screenshot from CCTV camera of Golden Oriole
Tory, our Avian PA, was involved in all aspects of outreach. She contacted various associations and organisations to ensure we released the Golden Oriole in the best place and helped any conservation efforts.
It was a privilege to care for this species, and a very different experience to our normal work for lots of reasons - not least because of the public interest and scrutiny due to her rarity. This experience placed different and sometimes unexpected pressures on our rehabbers. High profile rehabilitations can generate interest and enthusiasm and an opportunity to engage the public in the work of a rescue, but can also generate a lot of stress, and undoubtedly would have the potential for negative publicity too.
FAWR have been working hard to foster productive relationships with local veterinary practices after discovering that some practices were generally reluctant to work with wildlife rescues due to previous negative experiences, especially around differences in ethical approaches. We are therefore always clear about our high standards and approach to protocols, treatment and release plans etc. We use the medium of email to approach and discuss protocols and educational resources.
The vet contact who brought the bird into our care also had links to the British Trust for Ornithology in our country - and a ringer who was keen to record our rare visitor. The ringer was also a seasoned ornithologist and able to advise us on the best release location. We had to be flexible on release location in order to reduce stress to the bird - the original plan was to take her out to the coast where Golden Orioles have previously bred in the UK, but it was decided that the length of the journey would be an unacceptable stressor to the bird who was very anxious in captivity so a more local location had to be found (Dickens et al.,2009). In scouting potential release locations, we also wrote to the National Trust and Wildlife Trust, who were extremely helpful and although we ended up releasing elsewhere, we established helpful contacts within those organisations that we can draw on in the future.
Social Media/Media:
We frequently post on our social media channels about rehabilitation stories - to both raise awareness of our work, and for public outreach/education purposes. We posted about the Golden Oriole whilst she was in our care - and immediately had birdwatching groups getting in touch with us hoping to view the release. Unsurprisingly, this has never happened before with the dozens of pigeons, doves, swifts or even raptors we’ve cared for. There are rare bird sighting alert groups and twitter accounts reporting news of sightings, so news like this spread fast.
This public interest presented issues in terms of:
The welfare/stress levels of the bird.
Potential health & safety implications of a large group (including the Covid meeting restrictions at the time).
Potential negative publicity from a crowded release, or conversely from keeping the release secret in the face of public interest.
We ultimately had a small release with key people there - including ringers and a representative from a local birding group who recorded the sighting. The location was kept secret, and we made no further pre-release posts about the oriole. Once she had been successfully released, we wrote a press release which we pitched to both national and local outlets, adapting the story to appeal to each. The story appeared on/in The BBC, The Mirror, The Metro, The local Arts Magazine and local television. The story was generally well received, but as with all social media discourse there was some criticism. In our case some people were upset that the young female oriole had not been taken to the only place in the UK the species had been known to breed in the past. People have been trying desperately to encourage them back to the UK so we understood the frustration, but we posted to openly explain that the release decision was made for the bird’s welfare (rather a live oriole in the Midlands than an oriole who had died of transport stress in Norfolk!) and they understood. It was our first encounter with the birding community, and whilst we were a little worried about how their enthusiasm would manifest, we were very pleased to find that they were supportive and understanding about the decisions we had made.
Major lessons learned in the management of a high-profile rehabilitation:
Think before you post online - the public interest may be overwhelming/challenging to manage.
Do make the most of the media interest at the right time but be aware that you will need to pitch stories yourselves and be available for interview/comment.
When pitching to media, do make their job as easy as possible - provide contact details, photographs, local angles as to why the story is interesting.
Be clear about who is leading on which aspects of the release if you’re working with multiple organisations.
It can be a great opportunity to establish long-term relationships with other organisations - we now have contacts within the Wildlife Trust, National Trust and the British Trust for Ornithology as well as local and national media.
Plans may need to change (as ours did for the release location) so you will have to be flexible and have someone coordinating with the different parties involved.
Figure 2: Release photo of Golden Oriole
References:
ABOLINS-ABOLS, M., HOPE, S, F., KETTERSON, E, D., (2016) Effect of acute stressor on reproductive behavior differs between urban and rural birds. Ecol Evol. 2016 Aug 20;6(18):6546-6555. doi: 10.1002/ece3.2347. PMID: 27777728; PMCID: PMC5058526.
ANGELIER F, PARENTEAU C, TROUVÉ C, ANGELIER N., (2016). Does the stress response predict the ability of wild birds to adjust to short-term captivity? A study of the rock pigeon (Columbia livia). R Soc Open Sci. 2016 Dec 21;3(12):160840. doi: 10.1098/rsos.160840. PMID: 28083117; PMCID: PMC5210699.
BIRDLIFE INTERNATIONAL (2021) Species factsheet: Oriolus oriolus. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 03/08/2021. Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2021) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 03/08/2021.
BROWN, J. AND GEHRT, S. D. 2009. Th e basics of using remote cameras to monitor wildlife. The Ohio State University Extension: Agriculture and Natural Resources.
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