Molly and Peggy will be together for the first time in weeks after the bird's return. (Supplied: Juliette Wells)© Provided by ABC News (AU)After more than six weeks in limbo, an Insta-famous magpie has been returned to a Gold Coast couple who illegally raised it alongside their pet Staffordshire terrier after finding it as a chick.
Molly the magpie was voluntarily surrendered to Queensland's Department of Environment, Science and Innovation (DESI) on March 1
DESI said it seized the bird as the couple who raised it, Juliette Wells and Reece Mortensen, had taken it from the wild and kept it "unlawfully with no permit, licence or authority".
The public backlash to Molly's seizure was immense, with the state premier and even surfing legend Kelly Slater both advocating for the bird's return.
