And with the fall slowdown comes a decrease in LWR updates, as the critters aren’t coming in in sufficient numbers to justify weekly updates. Starting this week, we’ll drop to twice monthly, so your next update will be on Sept. 15; that is, unless you’d like long-winded, mostly photo-less (and video-less) treatises on whatever aspect of wildlife rehab strikes my fancy that particular week. (If that notion appeals to ya, drop a line in the comments and I’ll consider it!)
While there were numerous calls this week, some I was able to talk through reuniting mama and baby, and some would have resulted in intakes except that the injured adult birds died en route. The wood stork from last week was euthanized; his injuries were too severe to be fixed. None of my releases are coming down consistently for handouts now, although the blue jay does tend to show up more often than anyone else: I see him almost daily. He’s also going through a molt at the moment, so he’s a scruffy-looking rascal right now.
Igor the crow has flown the coop for good; there’s been no sign of him since early last week, when the crows who’d started hanging around the yard and calling to him coaxed him into leaving with them. Don’t see them around now, either, although I’m still hearing them in the distance. Crows are very clannish, but I’ve been lucky in that about two-thirds of the crows I’ve released have been adopted into the local group. Maybe a plentiful food supply makes a difference.
And yes, before anyone asks, I miss Igor, but that’s the nature of wildlife rehab. The goal upon Igor’s intake—as with each intake—was to release a bird capable of surviving on his own in the wild. Igor is now with the local “murder” of crows, so he’ll have their companionship and support as he continues to thrive in his natural environment. Mission accomplished!
While there were numerous calls this week, some I was able to talk through reuniting mama and baby, and some would have resulted in intakes except that the injured adult birds died en route. The wood stork from last week was euthanized; his injuries were too severe to be fixed. None of my releases are coming down consistently for handouts now, although the blue jay does tend to show up more often than anyone else: I see him almost daily. He’s also going through a molt at the moment, so he’s a scruffy-looking rascal right now.
Igor the crow has flown the coop for good; there’s been no sign of him since early last week, when the crows who’d started hanging around the yard and calling to him coaxed him into leaving with them. Don’t see them around now, either, although I’m still hearing them in the distance. Crows are very clannish, but I’ve been lucky in that about two-thirds of the crows I’ve released have been adopted into the local group. Maybe a plentiful food supply makes a difference.
And yes, before anyone asks, I miss Igor, but that’s the nature of wildlife rehab. The goal upon Igor’s intake—as with each intake—was to release a bird capable of surviving on his own in the wild. Igor is now with the local “murder” of crows, so he’ll have their companionship and support as he continues to thrive in his natural environment. Mission accomplished!
Unfortunately, this young Cooper’s hawk wasn’t as lucky. He came in last Monday and died as I was examining him—right in front of the people who brought him. I had taken him out of the box as they filled out the intake form, and his head lolled weakly to the side—not a good sign. I felt his keel, which was razor-sharp, and explained to them that he was very weak from starvation, but before I could even get fluids to start him on, he had a small seizure in my hands and died.
The photos below are so you can see the feather patterns and recognize a juvie Coop the next time you see one—note the long tail feathers; the shot of his keel is to show you what a starving bird’s breastbone looks like. This poor bird had no “meat” covering his breastbone. He’d been without food for a very long time.
The photos below are so you can see the feather patterns and recognize a juvie Coop the next time you see one—note the long tail feathers; the shot of his keel is to show you what a starving bird’s breastbone looks like. This poor bird had no “meat” covering his breastbone. He’d been without food for a very long time.
And the final shots for the week are of this lovely female Northern, or bob-white, quail who was in my driveway last week. “Bob-whites”, which are ground-nesting birds, were fairly plentiful but on the decline when I was growing up; thanks to habitat destruction, over-hunting, native predators like snakes and coons, and the introduction of non-native predators like coyotes and feral cats, they’re now on the near-threatened list. There’s been a concerted effort by DNR, farmers and hunters in Georgia to increase their numbers, and it seems to be paying off. We’re hearing—and seeing—them more often now, at least in my neck of the woods.
With any luck, if the weather cooperates, I’ll be posting progress photos as we begin work on the flight pens later this month. Given that this time of year I tend to see more raptors than songbirds in rehab, the raptor flight will more than likely take priority.
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