By 3 News online staff
A bird’s nest with eggs still in it has been found on a plane which arrived in Auckland from the United States last week.
Engineers working on the plane alerted biosecurity staff to the nest which they found in the wheel housing of the Boeing 737.
The nest was made from mud, feathers and straw and contained two hatched eggs and two whole eggs. The species of bird is not yet known.
Ministry for Primary Industries team leader Steve Gay says the nest could be a biosecurity risk.
“The engineers did the right thing. The materials had potential to carry plant and avian diseases that could have threatened our wildlife and primary industries.”
The plane was transported to Auckland from Arizona to be dismantled, after having been stored in the Mojave Desert for some time.
Mr Gay says quarantine inspectors will be checking the plane regularly as it is dismantled for other potential biosecurity-risk material.
3 News