Lost in England, one silly booby

A RARE red-footed booby has been found 6,000 miles from home – on an English beach.

The seabird ( pictured), which is native to tropical and subtropical islands including the Galapagos, was picked up in St Leonards, East Sussex. The bird was underweight, deydrated and with poor feather condition. It was taken to an RSPCA hospital where it is in intensive care.

Experts from East Sussex Wildlife Rescue and Ambulance Service said it was a mystery how the bird landed so far from its native habitat. Rescuers Andrew Loftus and Charlotte Humphreys were shocked to find the exhausted bird when they were called to the beach and said it was easy to catch.

The charity’s founder Trevor Weeks said: ‘This one appears to be the colouration of a juvenile. One possible theory is that it’s landed on a boat and stayed on the boat until it was in these waters. We are rather baffled.’ The RSPCA said it may have been blown off course by the recent hurricane in Florida.