No further comments needed on these photos and the video:
Hmmm…a wild bird who flies toward people and begs from them? My best guess? Someone raised this bird illegally, feeding it God-knows-what, and decided since it was fully feathered it was capable of fending for itself…and dumped it. Folks, THIS is why I get so worked up about people having the proper permits and training before working with ANY wildlife.
Great crested flycatchers, despite their fearsome-sounding name, are gentle little loves who must be taught to—as their name would suggest—catch flies and other insects on the wing. They’re not seedeaters; they’re not birds who can be shown a dish of mealworms and figure it out. A properly trained and permitted rehabber would know these things, and this little darling wouldn’t be sitting calmly in a cage at LWR, rail-thin, with barely the strength to perch…
What are his chances? I dunno. He’s severely emaciated but will readily take the food I offer and even call for it. Hopefully the rescuing family found him in time and we can pull him through.
Possums are neat little critters: they’re North America’s only native marsupial, and they’ve changed very little over the past few million years. They’re also incredibly slow eaters as babies, and since I refuse to tube a healthy animal for my own convenience, this means we spend a minimum of 15 minutes per feeding on this one little guy. This is why I don’t work with possums a whole lot these days, despite my fondness for the clueless little rascals. Thankfully, it doesn’t take them long after their eyes open to begin at least limited self-feeding. I’m looking forward to his reaching that point…soon…