Baby bird season

7 years ago

last modified: 7 years ago

Some of you know I was a licensed wild bird rehabilitator for over 27 years. I hope you're ok with me pisting the following here…it's not gardening related but as gardeners we tend to see more stuff in our properties. Also, if you want you can find more wildlife information on my FB page. Just type in my first name and look for my avitar. I make all such info public so you'll be able to see it.

BABY BIRDS

It's that time of year when I get calls from people who know I was a wild bird rehabilitator for many years and they want to know what to do about a baby bird they found. Please share this information. Here's the scoop:

Wild bird parents do a much better job at successfully rearing their young than humans. If the baby bird is naked or has pin feathers and cannot stand or move around freely, it should be returned to its nest. IT'S NOT TRUE THAT IF A HUMAN TOUCHES IT, ITS MOTHER WILL DESERT IT. Usually nestlings land on the ground right under their nests. If the bird is lying under a tree or shrub try to locate its nest, probably straight above in the tree or shrub. If the nest has fallen on the ground, secure it in the tree or shrub. If it is destroyed, make a new one out of a margarine tub lined with grass by poking a couple of holes on the bottom for rain drainage, tying three or four strings around the rim and securing it close to the original nest site.

Watch the nest closely for at least one half hour to see if the parents return. If the baby bird is well-feathered and hopping around, leave it alone; it is a fledgling. At that age, the young bird is supposed to hop around in the bushes or under them and exercise its wings. A parent is probably close by. If the youngster is in the street, herd it back to the nearest bush.

If for some reason the bird cannot be reunited with its parent(s) or is injured or bleeding call a wildlife rehabilitator. Please don't try to raise it yourself. Wild birds should not be raised alone and they require specific diets to insure good feather and bone development. Depending on their age they may need to be fed as often as every half hour from 7am to 9pm.

If you have any questions feel free to PM me.

Featured Answer

dirtygardener

7 years ago

I'm seeing mama and papa birds chasing the predatory birds like mad around here, since we have so many trees. Saw mockingbirds chasing off the red shouldered hawk the other day and yesterday, the mama redbird was chasing off a crow.

I've never seen a baby on the ground, yet, but if I do, I know what to do, since I raised cockatiels for years. And yes, they do need special food and feeding them by hand is a lot more complicated than just stuffing food in their mouths. They can choke to death or drown from trying to give them water if you don't know what you're doing.

So Bea is right, keep them safe and call a wildlife rehab person.

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Comments (6)

sultry_jasmine_nights (Florida-9a-ish)
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
What a great post/spring reminder! Yes, birds and gardens go hand in hand. Cudo to those who hand feed baby birds. Its work! I have parrots. When I was in college in AZ, I adopted a baby Severe Macaw that was still being fed formula. My dh traded off syringe feeding. He did ut while I was in class. We had to check the temperature of the formula so it didnt burn the crop. My Yellow Naped Amazon was a few yrs old when we got him, luckily we didnt have to syringe feed him. He had been abused from the previous owner. He had lived on a large perch his whole life and his feet had contractures. He is a great joy and is quite a character. He has his quirks and we respect that.

Lordy, I should have never let him watch South Park (my oldest son's doing when an older teenager)! That's all I can say on here about his language but he is hysterical. He speaks fluent Spanish and English, and likes to imitate animal noises, especially pigs lol. He likes to call the cats..here kityy kitty, then bite them and laugh wickedly. Any new cat learns quickly who the boss is and becomes wise to his calling.

He loves my youngest son the most, who has many learning disabilities and they have a very strong bond.

We had a Conure, lovebirds, cockatiels, parakeets, and finches in the past.
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sultry_jasmine_nights (Florida-9a-ish)
7 years ago
I will have to share my story later about my one legged Key West hen.
dirtygardener
7 years ago
Sultry, I loved my 'tiels so much, but I had to find them a home when I moved. I've thought of getting more, but they can be noisy, so I don't think my neighbors would appreciate them.

I ended up hand-feeding because one of my females was rejecting her babies, and I didn't realize it until one had died. I took the other three inside and hand-fed them until they were weaned. Sadly, a raccoon got into my back porch and killed all 9 of my baby birds and traumatized the adults. Then some kids got into the cage and two of my last 3 birds got loose. I got one back, but my favorite one got away and I never saw him again. I walked around the neighborhood calling for him for days and spotted him a few times, but then he just disappeared. The last two went to a bird rescue when I moved.
sultry_jasmine_nights (Florida-9a-ish)
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
DG, I think you should get another bird. Just one cockatiel or parakeet wouldn't make much noise and I think it would be loved and make you very happy as well. Finches are fairly quiet even when there's two.

One parrot is still very noisy. Our Amazon has episodes where he makes some weird old 1990's printer noise then starts making some crazy monkey noise super loud!

Conures are as bad as Guineas..no lie! Our Jenday Conure could hear our car coming a block away and would screech loud until we came into the house for 10 min.
dirtygardener
7 years ago
Sultry, I may get another 'tiel, but if I do, I'll get a pair so they can keep each other company. They aren't as noisy that way. I just can't stand keeping them in cages all day, so I'd have to clip their wings a bit so I could take them outside and put them on perches. A parakeet or two might be nice, if I could get them very young and hand train them. Most sold in stores are not hand tamed.