Mabey's play cleverly seems to be saying that you may be looking for something precious (the title bird) but in the process, you find something more precious, like better communication in your flawed relationship. The three couples (also cleverly given names that can be played by any gender) are at various stages of their relationships. Some happy, some going south. The seemingly lost couples encounter the bird, but that takes a back seat to what they learn about each other in the search.