A magpie saves a life
By Judy Evans
@JudyEv (358558)
Rockingham, Australia
July 5, 2025 8:43am CST
Another feel-good Western Australian story involves a lady from Esperance where we once lived.
Sandie Gillard has been caring for wildlife for over 70 years but in a freak accident in 2020, she fell from a two-storey balcony, hitting her head on the pavement below. She cracked her skull and her right arm was torn from its socket. As she began to regain unconscious, she heard a purring sound and felt something was tapping her gently on the head as if trying to waken her.
She came to enough to call her husband. Paramedics were called and Sandie was flown to Royal Perth Hospital. Doctors say that if she hadn’t woken when she did, she might have died. The purring and tapping came from Jellybean, a magpie that Sandie had cared for after it fell from its nest, too young to fly. Jellybean lived in the wild but regularly visited Sandie.
The photo is of my mother’s magpies. They were wild but came to the back door to be fed. What I found interesting about Mum’s feathered friends was that a single bird would arrive, Mum would get some food for it and half a dozen more birds would suddenly appear without the single bird uttering a single chirp.
The photo is of a handsome magpie that my Mum used to feed.
22 people like this
20 responses
@DaddyEvil (153341)
• United States
5 Jul
I'm glad she got help in time... That is a nice story. 

5 people like this

@DaddyEvil (153341)
• United States
6 Jul
@JudyEv Yes, they are... Birds in the Corvid family have tested out at about a 5 year old human level. I'm sure they aren't the only ones, either.
3 people like this

@popciclecold (40024)
• United States
5 Jul
That is an amazing rescue. Animals are really smart. I am glad the bird was there.
3 people like this
@snowy22315 (192782)
• United States
5 Jul
They are smart birds. Animals know when we are not exhibiting our usual behavior and become concerned. Friend feeds a crow on a regular basis.
3 people like this
@Tampa_girl7 (52866)
• United States
5 Jul
She is one blessed lady to have been saved by Jellybean.
3 people like this
@Ineeddentures (10563)
•
6 Jul
That is indeed a very handsome Magpie Judy.
Jellybean really did good tapping on her head to wake her up.
Clever bird indeed
2 people like this
@JudyEv (358558)
• Rockingham, Australia
7 Jul
@Ineeddentures Yes, they are different.
2 people like this

@GardenGerty (164749)
• United States
6 Jul
It seems it was concerned that she fell from her "nest" and was returning a favor.
2 people like this
@rsa101 (39100)
• Philippines
8 Jul
@JudyEv In Singapore, they're quite the regular too, just like the ever-present crows that seem to be everywhere. These fearless creatures have no concept of personal space, and if you're enjoying a meal in public, they might just decide to join you—uninvited, of course—swooping down like little food-snatching ninjas to steal your lunch right out of your hands.
.

1 person likes this


@wolfgirl569 (119276)
• Marion, Ohio
6 Jul
@JudyEv The red wing blackbirds here will do that
1 person likes this

@MarieCoyle (46276)
•
6 Jul
That's a really good story. She cared for Jellybean when he fell from the nest, and Jellybean was there when most needed. Incredible...animals often know way more than we think they are capable of.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (46276)
•
7 Jul
@JudyEv
I think many animals can be very intuitive. Many seem to know when we are happy, sad, in need of comfort, or just sit by us when we need a quiet time.
1 person likes this
@BarBaraPrz (50012)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
5 Jul
Jellybean knew that she, too, was too young to fly...
1 person likes this
@allknowing (149603)
• India
6 Jul
Animals have better instincts than us human beings Our dog once alerted us when there was a sound in the kitchen We were in our bedroom. The cable had caught fire.
1 person likes this
@RasmaSandra (86951)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
5 Jul
Now that is a story that brought tears to my eyes, What a wonderful bird Jellybean is,
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (194717)
• United States
5 Jul
She is one lucky lady. We don't have magpies here in Ohio.
1 person likes this
