I Found a Baby Bird, Now What?
During the spring and summer, wildlife rehabbers across the country are presented with a problem. People working in their yards, walking on trails, or visiting outdoor sites find a baby bird that cannot yet fly. It seems apparent that there are no adult birds tending to the young bird, so people immediately assume that the fledgling needs help. So they scoop up the bird, put it in a cardboard box, and bring it to the nearest facility they can think of to save the youngster.
Sadly, this act of kindness probably does more harm than good.
The vast majority of baby birds brought to rehabbers are fledglings. This means that the babies have grown to the point at which they are just too big for their nest and need room to move around, flap their wings, and learn to fly. Additionally, because their parents built the nest, laid the eggs, and fed the babies for a couple of weeks, predators may be homing in on the nest site by now. If the babies leave the nest and disperse into the surrounding vegetation, they can avoid predators. The parent birds keep track of the babies using certain types of calls. When the baby responds, the adults bring food to the baby.
If they can hop and flutter about on their own, leave them alone. This principle applies to other animals including deer fawns, baby rabbits, raccoons, and opossums.
Remember, the best thing you can do for the birds is to not interfere with Mother Nature; she will take care of them.
Advise your children not to touch them, and if your children bring you a baby bird, help them return it to where it was found.
Three Stages of Development
The First Thing You Need to Know
If you find a baby songbird on the ground, you’ll need to know two things to determine whether or not the baby bird needs help.
First, you’ll need to know if the bird is injured and, second, you’ll need to know if the bird is a hatchling, nestling, or fledgling.
This is a Hatchling
A hatchling is a very young bird, usually just hours or one or two days old, and still very vulnerable. This is a more generic term that can apply to any recently hatched bird, regardless of species or nesting type. Hatchlings require intense parental care and are unable to survive without assistance and protection.
This is a Nestling
A nestling is a young bird, typically covered with soft down, that has not yet developed its flight feathers and is not ready to leave the nest. Nestlings typically require moderate to intensive parental care and protection, but they can be left alone for extended periods while adult birds are foraging.
This is a Fledgling
A fledgling is an adolescent bird that is on the ground for a few days as it learns to feed itself, recognize predators, and builds the strength to fly. You can recognize a fledgling by a short tail on a fully feathered body. A bird in this stage often looks notably different from an adult. No need to be alarmed if you find a bird like this out of the nest—its parents are likely nearby.
Fledglings Do NOT Need Help WHEN:
If you find a young bird alone on the ground or otherwise away from its nest, you must first determine if it is, in fact, a baby in need of assistance. Many songbird fledglings leave the nest 2-5 days before they can fly, and the parent birds are still caring for them, feeding them, and watching for their safety.
If the bird appears healthy and energetic and hops away when you approach it, leave it alone.
The parents are generally flying overhead and may even attack you as you approach their baby. Keep pets out of the area for a few days to allow the bird to learn how to fly and get off the ground.
Birds at this age do not do well in rehabilitation, so please allow every chance for their parents to care for them.
How Do I Know if a Baby Bird is Abandoned?
As baby birds get older, their parents spend less and less time with them. The babies will hunker down when the parents are not around. This is perfectly normal behavior.
If the babies seem healthy, watch the nest for at least 30 minutes without taking your eyes off it. If the parents have not come back, the birds may need help. Many times when a human spots a baby bird, they fail to see the nearby parents. It may take a half-hour or longer for parent birds to return to their babies, so patience is essential.
Another way to check whether the babies are being cared for is to look in the nest. In many species, the babies deposit fecal sacs that the parents carry out throughout the day. If the nest is clean, the parents have been there.
WHEN Baby Birds NEED Your Help:
When you first notice a baby bird, observe it closely. Watch its energy level and behavior to determine if it needs assistance. Energetic, active birds should be fine on their own, while weaker, less active birds may need help. Only a small number of birds found are truly hatchlings or nestlings. They were probably blown from a nest, or the nest was destroyed. Without assistance, these birds will probably die. But birds of any age that have clear signs of injuries such as wounds or bent wings will need help.
IMPORTANT! Do NOT Give Birds Food or Water!
It can cause them to choke, trigger serious digestive problems or cause aspiration pneumonia. Many injured animals are in shock and force-feeding can kill them. Especially with birds - everyone thinks they are doing the right thing by leaving water and food, but in reality, it's the worst thing you can do. What is not intuitive to us is how easy it is to fatally injure a baby bird/animal by feeding it incorrectly. It is okay to not feed baby birds for a while. They will not starve in the several hours it takes to get them to the animal hospital. They will not starve overnight if you find them at 6 pm and the animal hospital doesn’t open until 9 am the next morning. Baby birds expect to fast through the night. The risk to the bird of starvation is much smaller than the risk of a human trying to feed it without the necessary expertise. Licensed rehabbers know what to feed them and how often.
(1) If a nestling (with feathers, eyes open) has fallen out of the nest and is not injured, gently pick it up and place it back in its nest. Mom will not be scared off by the “smell” of humans on the infant. This is a myth. The best thing that can be done is to place the baby back in the nest if there is one. If you encounter nestlings in your yard, look for a nest within a few yards of where you found the bird. If you can safely replace the nestling, do so as soon as you can.
(2) If you find a hatchling (without feathers) outside of their nest or if they feel cold to the touch, please contact Friends of the Forest. If you find a fallen nest, please call immediately once you gather the babies; depending on the situation, it may be possible to relocate the nest. Remember, even if you cannot reach us overnight, do NOT offer food or water. A hypothermic (cold) bird will die from food or water, and babies are prone to inhaling rather than swallowing. Keep the bird(s) warm and covered in a dark, quiet room until you can reach us.
If you are unable to find the nest or it is unreachable or destroyed, the next best thing to do is make a substitute nest and put it as close to where you think the original nest was. A good substitute can be made with plastic margarine or a Cool Whip container with small holes poked in the bottom for drainage. Line the container with dried grasses.
Be sure the basket is secure (nail it to the tree if necessary) so the baby bird will not fall out or the nest will not fall. Do not feed the nestling or hatchling, as its parents will respond to its squawking and return to feed it. It may take an hour or longer for wary adults to approach their baby again, but they will eventually resume caring for their baby.
A Bird Needs Help When:
The bird is in immediate or obvious danger.
The bird was seen being injured (such as hit by a car).
The bird has an obvious injury (such as a dragging limb or blood on its feathers).
The bird is known to be orphaned and is too young to survive on its own.
The bird is too young to survive on its own and the nest/parents cannot be located or accessed.
The bird has come into contact with a cat or dog. Any bird who has had contact with a pet or who has cuts or lacerations will need to come into Friends of the Forest for antibiotic treatment.
Read below on how to properly rescue a baby bird.
How To Properly Rescue A Baby Bird
IMPORTANT: CATS carry a bacteria (Pasteurella multocida) in their saliva that is very toxic to birds and can cause death within 48 hours. Any bird found with a cat should be examined by a Wildlife Rehabilitator IMMEDIATELY.
Prepare a Transportation Container
A shoebox with air holes in the lid and lined with a small paper towel works for most songbirds. Birds are more likely to stay still and quiet in a darkened environment.
Protect Yourself
Wear gloves, if possible. Some birds may stab with their beaks, and slap with their wings, to protect themselves, even if sick; birds commonly have parasites (fleas, lice, ticks) and carry diseases.
Keep the Bird in a Warm, Quiet, Dark Place - STRESS KILLS!
Don’t give it food or water. A hypothermic (cold) bird will die from food or water, and babies are prone to inhaling rather than swallowing.
Leave the bird alone.
Handle the bird as little as possible.
Keep children and pets away.
Birds are more likely to stay still and quiet in a darkened environment.
Contact a Wildlife Rehabilitator, State Wildlife Agency, or Wildlife Veterinarian as Soon as Possible
Don’t keep the bird at your home longer than necessary.
Keep the bird in a container; don’t let it loose in your house or car.
Take note of where exactly you found the bird.
CONTACT any of these resources:
(1) Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection for a list of rehabbers in CT
(2) Kensington Bird and Animal Hospital if the bird needs immediate medical attention
IMPORTANT: If an animal (fox, raccoon, opossum, coyote, squirrel, skunk, etc) appears to be sick, it may not be safe to handle it! If it is stumbling, staggering, walking in circles, dragging a limb or the hind end, or if it is acting strangely (approaching people or pets in an aggressive manner) never attempt to handle the animal. It may be rabid. Call your local Animal Control Officer or Police Department immediately to get assistance with a potentially rabid animal. If local authorities are not available to help with a potentially rabid animal, you can also contact DEEP Dispatch (860-424-3333).
Transporting the Bird
Never transport a bird held in a person's lap or loose in the vehicle.
Speak quietly, do not play the radio in your car.
Wash Your Hands After Contact with the Bird
Wash anything the bird was in contact with — towel, jacket, blanket, pet carrier —to prevent the spread of diseases and/or parasites to you or your pets.
NEVER Give a Baby Bird or Adult Bird Food Or Water!
It could be the wrong food and cause them to choke, trigger serious digestive problems, or cause aspiration pneumonia. They will not starve in the several hours it takes to get them to the animal hospital or wildlife rehabilitation center.
They will not starve overnight if you find them at 6 pm and the animal hospital does not open until 9 am the next morning. Baby birds expect to fast throughout the night.
Unless you have feathers, a state rehabilitor license, or the letters DVM, VMD, BVS, BVSc, BVMS, BVM after your name—you should not attempt to feed wild birds.
Can I Raise a Baby Bird I Found?
There will be times when you know for certain that a young bird is an orphan. The parent birds may have been killed by a predator or a window strike, or a nest with living babies may be obviously abandoned for far longer than normal. In these cases, it will be necessary to collect the young birds and turn them over to a licensed wildlife rehabilitator for proper care.
It violates federal and state laws, such as the Migratory Bird Act, to possess any wild native American bird for any length of time without proper permits. Second, young birds require specialized diets and the company of their own kind to learn the necessary skills for survival in the wild. Even with expert care and feeding, people simply cannot provide baby birds with most of the skills they need to negotiate the natural world.
