News: Spring/Summer 2006

A Londoner landed in a bit of a pickle when he found that his only pair of clean underpants were already taken.

Phillip Makepeace from Clapham was getting ready to go out on a date when he realised that his chest of drawers was all out of underpants. Looking into the garden he saw that he his last remaining pair of clean pants were on the line. But relief turned to shock when he went to retrieve them and found that a pair of nesting house sparrows (Passer domesticus) had got there first! Undaunted, the animal-lover re-secured the pants to his line - using an extra peg to make sure they were quite secure - and successfully completed his date in a dirty pair of pants! The resourceful Londoner said: 'It must have taken them at least two weeks and these sparrows are now counting on my pants to help them give birth'.

National News. 2006. Sparrows make nest in Londoner's pants. Viewed at http://www.lse.co.uk/ShowStory.asp?story=CA1827222U&news_headline=sparrows_make_nest_in_londoners_pants on July 25th 2006.