To the rescue …

Meet the cutest characters behind the scenes at World of Birds Wildlife Sanctuary and Monkey Park in Hout Bay.

Travelling along the R43 on his way to Hermanus, a doctor from Life Vincent Pallotti Hospital spotted a blue crane hanging upside down, caught in a wire fence. After making an urgent call to Hendrik Louw, General Manager at the World of Birds in Hout Bay, the bird was rescued.

Hendrik and his wife Claire, Head Curator at the sanctuary, treated the female crane for injured tendons and ripped ligaments for about three months.

“The knee healed up completely and then she was fit for release again,” says Hendrik. “It took time, but eventually we drove her one Sunday morning to Arabella Golf Estate – they have an estuary there, where the other blue cranes flock together.