[TowerTalk] Unusual bird problem - Bird stuck in mast

[Bill Coleman]

Today I climbed the tower to take down the four foot lighted  
snowflake that serves as a Christmas decoration. Just before I came  
down, I noticed something odd.

My nine-foot mast is mounted about 1/2" above the top of the rotator.  
I did this because when doing some antenna maintenance a couple of  
years or so ago, I found the mast full of acorns. The 1/2" gap allows  
the acorns to fall through.

What I noticed were some feathers sticking out of the bottom of the  
mast. A bit of digging with a piece of wire, it turned out to be a  
bird carcass -- a finch, if memory serves. Apparently, he had backed  
into the top of the mast, then he couldn't climb back out. Poor guy.

Anyone else seen anything like this?

Bill Coleman, AA4LR, PP-ASEL        Mail: aa4lr at arrl.net
Quote: "Not within a thousand years will man ever fly!"
             -- Wilbur Wright, 1901