A member of Frome Town Council’s ranger team had an unusual day at work recently, while watering flowers near Frome Library. A kingfisher landed on the ground nearby and looked as if it might need help, so Ranger Laura O’Brien picked it up to keep it safe. There followed a rare opportunity to observe this beautiful bird at close quarters, as the kingfisher remained with Laura for ten minutes, before appearing to recover itself and fly back to the river.
Laura said:
“It was amazing to be able to be that close to it and just be able to look at its feathers in detail; for it to just sit on my finger looking into my eyes! It stayed on my hand for about ten minutes – I took my glove off and it kind of wanted to perch on my finger, so I was just watering the flowers with a bird on my finger. They’re notoriously quite elusive and just stick to the river; I don’t know why it flew out into the town and it was very out of character that it was staying on my hand. It actually seemed quite calm, it wasn’t breathing heavily at all or shaking – I think it was in shock. Then it flew away, back to the river and apparently fine.”
Resilience Officer at FTC Jo Morris said “Spotting a kingfisher in the centre of Frome is a reminder that nature and wildlife are never far away. We’re lucky to have lots of green space in Frome and to have the River Frome running through our town and there’s so much evidence that proximity to and access to nature are really good for us. By caring for the habitats that wildlife depends upon, we’re also looking after our own wellbeing and the health of the planet. We’d love to hear what you think of some plans we’re putting together at FTC to protect wild habitats in Frome – please go to My Frome by 16 August to take part.
Find FTC’s Nature Recovery Plan, a plan to support nature and wild habitats at myfrome.co.uk. The draft plan is live until 16 August and will be finalised later in the year.
