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Nicole Moodie is raising her voice to caution others after a frightening incident involving her daughter, Sam Moodie, which has left her deeply concerned about the young girl’s eyesight.
“I’ve always taught my children to avoid looking up when they hear a bird,” Nicole shared in an interview with 9News.
“Sam had her head down, yet the bird came straight at her and struck her in the eye,” she recounted.
The incident took place as the 12-year-old was crossing the school oval in Australind, a town in Western Australia, when she was unexpectedly swooped upon by a magpie.
“I could see the pain etched across her face; she was suffering greatly,” Nicole expressed.
“She’s got a high pain tolerance but she was very pained, she was crying and panicking as well.”
The Year 7 student has undergone two surgeries and is now at Perth Children’s Hospital.
While the extent of the damage still unknown, Sam may never see out of her left eye again after the bird’s beak caused damage to the lens.
The family don’t blame anyone but say other students had issues with the magpie before.
“From what I understand they had moved the baby the day of, and obviously dad was still where he was so he was a bit annoyed I think,” Nicole said.
“It’s just a really bad situation where she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
While magpie breeding season is at the tail end, experts say there’s still a risk.
“When the chicks are in the nest, and the males have a peak of testosterone around that time and that’s when they are the most aggressive or defensive,” Curtain University ecologist Associate Professor Bill Bateman told 9News.
If you’re heading out for a walk, the advice is to be alert – avoid magpie hotspots, wear a broad brim hat and put on some sunglasses.
“The best thing to do is, if you’re swooped by a magpie, is to just to keep moving and get out of the area,” Bateman said.