Photo: Supplied.
BY RANGER STACEY THOMSON, PRINCIPAL ADVISER – COMMUNITY EDUCATION (REDLAND CITY COUNCIL)
I love this time of year as daylight hours increase and local backyard birds perform their early morning symphony to inform us it’s time to rise and shine.
With spring well and truly upon us, have you noticed the arrival of a new generation of feathered friends?
It’s baby bird season … an exciting time in nature’s calendar! The season when nests are carefully constructed, eggs are laid and incubated, and tiny chicks hatch, grow and eventually fledge. Generally, this all happens without a hitch, but sometimes a baby bird is found on the ground – alone.
For wildlife officers, one of the most common wildlife questions is, “What should I do if I find a baby bird, with no sight of mum or dad?”
The answer depends on a few things. If the youngster is visibly injured, a trip to the nearest vet is the best thing you can do to give it a second chance at life.
But for a bird with no obvious injuries, check out the plumage! A baby bird with no feathers or fluffy down needs its parents. So, get creative and make a makeshift nest. Then pop it in a tree or shrub, as high as you can reach. Walk away, watch, and wait out of sight for up to half an hour to see if a parent appears … 99 per cent of the time mum or dad will return.
If the baby bird is a little older with feathers but not yet able to fly, it’s a fledgling. The advice is similar – place it gently in a tree, wait and watch. After about 30 minutes, if the parents don’t appear, a trip to the vet is the way to go.
If the chick is a plover or a curlew, they live on the ground and their parents will be close by. Look out for them and leave the chick alone.
Remember, we don’t want to remove a perfectly healthy chick from its family unnecessarily – that’s like kidnapping (or chick-napping). If in doubt, contact Redlands 24-hour Wildlife Rescue Service for advice.
Baby bird season is a special time of year, so let’s enjoy it.
Until next time … Stay Wild!
