These old bottles were all dug up in a long-disused household rubbish pit behind our house. Variations include bottles for medicines, tomato sauce, beer, lime juice, milk, hair oil, Vicks, Marmite, and liqueur.

Such old rubbish has become collectible and can even be visually appealing. However, in another variation, rubbish can be hazardous. Last evening at dusk, a Hadeda Ibis appeared in our garden with a blue plastic ring around its neck. We assume it had put its head through the ring when searching for food, and then the ring, made out of a rigid plastic, slipped down over its neck.

hadeda & bottles 029

Sadly, when the bird appeared in our garden again this morning we were distressed to see that its lower bill was trapped under the inside edge of the ring. Presumably this happened when it was trying to remove it. The bill was stuck in such a way that it is wedged partially open and so the poor bird won’t be able to eat or drink.

We phoned a local wildlife rehabilitation centre for advice on how we might catch it, and their only advice was try to sneak up on it and throw a towel over it. Needless to say, this bird is already hyper vigilant. When we went slowly outside, as soon as it saw us from a distance, it flew away. We have not seen it since.

Please be careful when disposing of household and other waste. For more on the issue of plastic waste and how it can effect animals on land , see here: http://www.onegreenplanet.org/environment/ways-plastic-pollution-impacts-animals-on-land/

Posted in response to the Weekly Photo Challenge with the theme ‘variations on a theme’. For more photos on this theme see here

Posted by Carol

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