Why did the spotted shag cross Andersons Bay Rd yesterday? Nobody really knows.
All that is known is it successfully made it to the other side after dodging vehicles on six lanes of traffic.
It was eventually netted by Department of Conservation community supervisor Craig Wilson, with the help of Mitre 10 Mega human resources manager Jen Sheldon.
Mr Wilson said it was an adult bird, and it was ''reasonably unusual'' to see them in built-up urban areas.
''It's very common for juvenile spotted shags to end up in town because they're young and they don't quite know how to look after themselves, and a few days of strong easterly wind will often blow them in.
''This one was an adult and it was clearly unwell. It wasn't able to fly properly.''
Following a close inspection of the bird, it was found to have an injured throat which meant it was not able to feed properly, he said.
''It certainly didn't have enough energy to be able to fly away.''
Mr Wilson believed the strong easterly winds around Dunedin yesterday had blown it into the city.
Unfortunately, despite the bird successfully crossing the busy road, it had to be euthanised.
''Because it seemed it wouldn't be able to survive in the wild, the most humane option seemed to be to euthanise it.''
Mr Wilson said it was a sad end to the story, but he applauded Dunedin residents for taking the time to call Doc and protect the bird from traffic.
