Molly the magpie to return home, but ‘owners’ have wings clipped

The Gold Coast couple who adopted an abandoned magpie will be reunited with their beloved bird, but will not be allowed to make any more money off the world-famous Molly and its relationship with two English Staffordshire bull terriers.

Peggy and Molly (along with Peggy’s puppy, Ruby) became a social media hit, amassing 1.2 million followers on Facebook and 816,000 on Instagram, but the bird was voluntarily surrendered to wildlife officers on March 1.

Juliette Wells and Reece Mortensen had cultivated the online following after they found Molly abandoned in 2020 and nursed it back to heath at their Gold Coast home.

Neither had a wildlife care licence and, since seizing the birds, wildlife officers determined Molly was “habituated” and unable to live its life in the wild.

Premier Steven Miles announced on Wednesday Molly would be allowed to return home, but on Thursday morning an Environment Department spokesperson said that would not be without stringent conditions.

“Molly’s return hinges on the family applying for a licence and agreeing with a range of conditions that will ensure the best outcome for the animal’s ongoing health and wellbeing,” the spokesperson said.

Loading

“Independent expert veterinary advice has shown that Molly is highly habituated and may have developmental issues, meaning it can never be rehabilitated or returned to the wild.”

The spokesperson also confirmed a condition of Molly’s return would be that Wells and Mortensen have “no ongoing commercial gain from the bird or its image”. Along with an enormous following on social media, they maintain a website selling merchandise.