It’s that time of year again! Somebody just showed up in my office with a baby bird.
Turns out this “injured bird”, which is actually a baby northern mockingbird, was found right by a mockingbird nest I’ve been monitoring, where the chicks just recently hopped out of the nest. So this story had a happy ending, luckily: baby and family reunited!
But yes, it’s the time of year when you’ll see birds who are fluttering awkwardly, or just sitting still (FYI, a baby bird’s innate predator defense is to crouch down and stay quiet! If he’s not running away from you, that means he’s just hoping you won’t see him!!!!!! Give him what he wants and pretend you didn’t see him!!!!!!!). But fear not: they’re just dumb babies awaiting their next grub.
I was searching my ‘old pictures’ folder for the dove picture from this post, and found this series of photographs of the capture and subsequent release of a juvenile cooper’s hawk (guest-starring my mother, the only person in the household who had handled raptors before, and therefore the designated hawk-wrangler).
This delightful criminal mastermind somehow got INTO the securely covered chicken pen and made short work of a chicken or two (the blood you can see around his beak and breast belonged to the unfortunate chicken), but could not work out how to exit the premises after his meal, and so had to be gently netted and then released outside the pen. A slightly stressful ordeal for the handsome young rogue, but a happy ending for everyone who was not a chicken.
talking about birds reminded me that I had a really vivid dream a few nights ago about seeing a crested caracara, and I was so excited because I’ve wanted to spot one literally for a decade and I woke up thinking about adding it to my life list and after about thirty confused seconds I realized it had been a dream and I was so mad
speaking of being a massive ecology nerd, guess what season it is, folks!
That’s right, it’s FLEDGLING BIRD SEASON here in North America, which means it’s time for an annual reminder that most species of birds have almost no sense of smell. Someone probably told you that if you touch a baby bird, the mother will smell you on it and reject her baby. THAT IS NOT THE CASE.
Pictured: a young Mourning Dove, after being rescued from the tender mercies of my dog, circa spring 2005. It’s a fledgling! Note how it has most of its feathers, but still looks a bit awkward and scruffy, and, being unable to properly fly, can be caught by an elderly husky or a child.
Hatchlings: IF it is covered in fluffy down (or partly naked) and cannot flutter successfully, it’s a hatchling, and has fallen from its nest prematurely. Look for the nest- if you find it and can reach it, return baby and then gtfo and let the parents return. If you can’t find the nest, or if you find it in pieces on the ground, use a small box lined with dryer lint or dog hair or similar fluff and attach as close as possible to where you found the bird or where you think the nest was. Return baby!!!!
Fledglings: If you spot a young bird covered with feathers on the ground, chances are it’s a fledgling (bird tween, can flutter) who is not doing well in flying 101, but it is probably NOT injured or sick. Hanging out on the ground is part of the learning to fly process! If it looks like it’s in immediate danger (i.e. of being run over, stepped on, or eaten by a cat or dog), the best thing you can do for it is to gently scoop it up and place it in the branches of a nearby tree or shrub, and then LEAVE. The parents are likely nearby, and will return once the coast is clear of humans/predators. If it flutter-hops away from you and you can’t catch it, then don’t worry! It just successfully avoided a predator (you), and therefore can probably continue to do so.
DON’T DON’T DON’T: Try to feed it, bring it into your house or car, or take it to your local vet or animal shelter.
IF it IS actually for-real injured, you can catch it and contact a local wildlife rehabilitation professional (and then listen to whatever they tell you), but keep in mind that they get a LOT of fledgling birds, and those birds have a pretty high mortality rate. They may tell you that there is nothing you or they can do but allow nature to take its course, and that’s hard, but important to hear and respect.
A Pretty Taste for Paradox 