Curiosity got the better of one Wellington whānau, who ended up saving the life of a kererū stuck out at sea.
Guy Marshall, 12, had spent hours fishing at Eastbourne beach on Sunday when he noticed a floating object which he thought looked like a duck decoy.
Later that day, the rest of his whānau went along for a swim, despite the cold, and noticed the object was still there.
Guy’s mother, Kendall Marshall, said her husband was curious to know what it was, so he swam out to investigate.
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“My husband, he swam out about 50 metres offshore and realised it was a kererū.
The couple have previously been ironman athletes, while their son is a surfer as well as a fisherman.
She said the bird happily clutched onto her husband’s arm while he swam back to shore with it.
They took the kererū, now named Moana, back to their home and made a sanctuary for it out of a box and decorated it with greenery.
Stoddard has taken Moana to a nest at Wellington Zoo.
Kererū Discovery took to Twitter to post about the rescue saying Moana would have died if it was not for the family who rescued her because her wings are not waterproof like seabirds.
Credit: stuff.co.nz
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