Huge bird stuck in net closes Topgolf for hours — until rescuers step in, photos show
In most cases, yelling “birdie” on a golf course is a good thing.
When the management of a Virginia Topgolf saw a brown blob in their driving range netting, they hoped it was anything but.
Tired and trapped, an osprey was caught in the net and far out of reach, according to an Oct. 10 Facebook post from the Richmond Wildlife Center.
The Topgolf employees called for help from the wildlife center, and when they arrived, they learned the driving range had been closed for hours to protect the osprey from flying golf balls, according to the post.
The employees told the wildlife officials the bird was able to fly, but instead it was trying to climb its way up the netting.
It just needed a little help.
The wildlife officials borrowed two extension poles from the Topgolf staff and tied a king-sized sheet between the poles, they said.
“This was meant to be more of a herding device than anything,” Richmond Wildlife Center said in the post.
The officials used the poles and sheet to slowly coax the bird up the netting toward freedom.
“Luckily, the osprey saw us coming and began climbing the net upwards until it eventually made it to the top of one of the structural poles,” Richmond Wildlife Center said in the post.
At first, the bird sat at the top of the netting and caught its breath, the wildlife officials said.
Then, they banged on the support beams to encourage the bird to head home, and soon it took off.
“It quickly took flight home,” the wildlife officials said.
Ospreys, a type of fish-hawk, are one of the larger birds of prey, though not quite as large as bald eagles, according to the National Wildlife Federation.
They can grow up to 23 inches tall and have a wingspan of 5 feet, the federation says.
This story was originally published October 10, 2023 at 1:25 PM with the headline "Huge bird stuck in net closes Topgolf for hours — until rescuers step in, photos show."
