Bird botherers down at RSPB forums are in a flap over the avian conservation charity's censoring of the word "cock".

Furious cock commenter JohnD, of Holmfirth, challenged moderators: "When is it not in order to refer to a male bird as a **** and a femail [sic] as a hen? It's censorship that is just silly," the Evening Standard reports. Other hide inhabitants ponder the issue here.

The site's administrators pleaded that their white label forum software was to blame for the puritanical ban. One RSPB cock apologist replied to JohnD: "It is far from an ideal situation, but it is better to be safe than sorry."

Happily, the forum takes a more liberal stance on tits - blue, great, or otherwise. ®