A RUNAWAY bird has now been rhea-united with his pals after being found napping in a flower bed.

Debbie Johnson, 48, and her family were in a flap when a member of a flock of birds they keep at their home in Great Horkesley disappeared.

Colin - a rhea who had been rehomed from elsewhere in Colchester just a few weeks before - had found a ditch and a gap in the fence and attempted to fly the nest last Wednesday.

But he was discovered by Mrs Simpson on the other side of the field behind her house.

After two-and-a-half hours of trying to coax the intrepid explorer back home, he got tangled in a hedge.

As it was 11pm and pitch

black the group it was better to leave him where he was and hope he made his way home when the other birds were being fed.

But the next day he had disappeared, and Mrs Simpson was told of sightings of the ostrich-like bird on the busy A134.

However, the trail went cold over the next couple of days as she was on shift at Colchester Hospital where she works as an A&E staff nurse.

Unbeknown to her, Colin, the rhea ended up settling in a garden 500 yards away and the owners had rightly called the RSPCA who found him a temporary place at Colchester Zoo before appealing for information about the owner.

After getting in touch, Mrs Johnson was able to transport Colin in a horsebox and now he is safely back with stablemate Roger.

Mrs Johnson thanked everyone who had reported sightings and shared the appeal for their help and has taken a box of chocolates to the family where Colin briefly lodged.

She said: “He is fine now. He is back with his friends but actually spent the afternoon he got back looking for another space to get out.

“I keep rheas as pets because I think they are amazing to watch.

“I hatched a few myself but I only had one so saw Colin advertised as free to a good home from someone on the other side of town.

“They were both lonely so it seemed a good fit.”

Colin is rhea-peat offender when it comes to escape acts.

When he was with his previous owners he hit the headlines after being spotted running down the A133 in Elmstead Market by rush hour drivers.

Rheas are flightless birds native to South America.

For more on Colin’s adventure visit facebook.com/The-adventures-of-Colin-the-Rhea.