Credit: Adam Jones
'For every one we save, we rejoice, because it’s such a wonderful thing to save a bird. We fall in love with them, but of course we still have to release them at the end of the day.'
Elisabeth Ashleigh
Elisabeth Ashleigh started Bardsea Bird Sanctuary in 2013. She now works with a group of keen volunteers – dubbed the ‘Tweet Fleet’ – who help to rehabilitate a variety of birds and release them back into the wild.
'When I was a child, I wasn’t allowed pets at home, but I was always looking for animals when I was out in nature. I’ve been rescuing birds since I was 17, alongside my work in fashion and illustration.
When I moved to south Cumbria in 2013, I found that there wasn’t a collective effort to help birds in my local area, so I set up Bardsea Bird Sanctuary.
I set to work rescuing anything I could find, and after a while it became too much for me to cope with on my own. Needing volunteers, I posted on Facebook and some wonderful people came forward to help. My daughter, Tamsin, named them the ‘Tweet Fleet’.
Our volunteers have particular species that they take care of. Bethany and Emma help swallows, swifts and house martins. Elizabeth helps woodpigeons and collared doves, and Sue and Lesley look after town pigeons. Dennis does ducks and gulls, and Warren helps birds of prey. This all came naturally depending on where people live.
The reason that some of the Tweet Fleet joined was that they needed something in their lives to hold on to – and doing something for wildlife gave them a sense of purpose. Most of them having caring roles in other parts of their lives, too.
With our dedicated volunteers, we manage quite well now, but the more people know about us, the more birds we find out about to rescue! People contact us to tell us about birds in need and rely on us to go and pick them up. Often they’re urban birds with injuries from cars and cats. Any injured bird sees a vet first before we rehabilitate them.
For every one we save, we rejoice, because it’s such a wonderful thing to save a bird. We fall in love with them, but of course we still have to release them at the end of the day.'
Ways to take action for nature at home