Red kite 'doing really well' after roadside rescue

A red kite found with a damaged wing and head trauma is "doing really well", a wildlife charity has said.

A member of the public found the bird of prey at a roadside in Marden, Kent, after it was "most likely struck by a vehicle", Folly Wildlife Rescue said.

Rescuers were not sure if the bird would "make it through the first half an hour", according to the Tunbridge Wells-based centre.

The bird will be moved to an aviary where it can begin flying again to continue its rehabilitation as a result of progress with its recovery, the charity said.

The centre plans to release the red kite near where it was rescued once vets deem it ready.

A Folly spokesperson said: "We don't recommend handling birds of prey without proper training because of their talons, but he was so collapsed when he was found, he didn't put up a fight at all."

Red kites were once extinct in England but a conservation programme in the 1980s and 1990s successfully brought them back.

They mainly feed on carrion, so can often be seen soaring over roads looking for roadkill, according to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

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