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July begins with a bang

7/9/2012

8 Comments

 
And I’m not talking about fireworks on the Fourth, either! From July 1-3 LWR received 12 new birds, then there was a slight lull, and yesterday one more came in.

Lordy, where to begin? The brown thrasher, cowbird and one mocker are now in the flight pen (the second mocker didn’t make it), along with a blue jay who came in just days before he would have fledged.

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The barn swallows look like crap because their new game is slinging food all over each other and their carrier; see below for pre- and post-bath photos—not much improvement. They’re happy little birds, even if they do remind me of Pigpen in Charlie Brown! They’re also beginning to test their wings, so the flight pen is in their near future.

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This adult brown thrasher came in with a major case of dehydration and a severely bruised wing; I also suspect we had a pretty serious concussion going on, as it took three days for the poor bird to begin perching and eating on his own. He’s doing much better now, although he still favors that wing, as you can see in the photos.

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The severe heat wave that ended June took its toll on wildlife; this screech owl was found standing in the shallow end of a pool, probably trying to cool off. Because we were worried about possible chlorine ingestion, I’ve had him for observation for a few days. He was lucky—no health issues from his exposure to the pool chemicals, and quite a healthy appetite. He’ll be sent back tomorrow to be released near where he was found. Below you can see him attempting to disappear, the apparent theory being that if his eyes are closed, I can’t see him!

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"You can't seeeee meeeee!"
LWR received yet another cowbird, this one the youngest this year. Quite a difference in just a week, huh?

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These house finches came in just days before fledging, after one of their parents was found dead and the other seemed to’ve disappeared.  House finches are generally good-natured little birds with sweet voices, and these babies are no exception. They’re almost ready for the flight pen, too.

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Wood ducklings are, as you no doubt remember from previous posts, very stressy, fragile little birds. These three tiny babies, probably no more than 3-4 days old, were found alone in a suburban yard. They were subsequently fed bread and milk (all together now: “Birds don’t have boobs; they cannot digest milk.”) and medicated starter feed, which is deadly to wood ducks. I was hopeful we’d dodged the proverbial bullet, as they seemed very alert, ate well and were preening after I got them, but none of them made it through the night. Of all the waterfowl I work with, I think wood ducks are my favorite, so I was really bummed about losing these babies.

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Short swims in shallow water are essential to wood ducklings' health.
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Preening ducklings
This pre-fledgling red bellied woodpecker, however, was luckier. He was unnested in a storm, found at the base of a tree just before dark, and gotten to me the next morning. Red bellies are such pretty birds! Their name comes from a blush streak that runs down their bellies. This young fellow is also almost ready for the flight pen.

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It’s the time of year we start seeing young Mississippi kites coming in, and sure enough, yesterday this baby was found beside the road, his sibling dead in the road. M. kites are small raptors whose diet actually consists for the most part of insects that they catch and eat in mid-air. If you’ve never seen this, you’ve missed a treat: they snag the insect with a foot and then bring the foot up to their beak to eat in flight. The adults have slate gray bodies, light gray heads and striking red eyes. They’re gorgeous, amazing birds; I have a great fondness for them.

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And finally, the hummer is perching on the feeder as of today, but not drinking from it yet. Below are a few more neat shots of the imperious, stubborn, thoroughly delightful little snot.

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8 Comments
Jan Buckwald
7/8/2012 06:41:36 pm

Vonda, you're so awesome doing what you do. I've missed chatting on the NYU hawk page, as I decided to mostly let it go this year. But I've kept up with three hawker blogs, so I feel like I'm still in the loop. I love my hawks, all of them. Just wanted to say thank you and, again, I'm pretty amazed at the breadth of your talent, and so appreciative that you're doing this work. Be well. Jan (from CA)

Reply
Laurens Wildlife Rescue link
7/9/2012 05:59:04 am

Thanks Jan--missed you on chat, but a lot of the "regulars" from last year sort of dropped by the wayside this year.

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Ida Blanche
7/9/2012 03:47:14 am

A special treat as always! It would be next to impossible for me to permit
the recovered family members to return to nature!

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Laurens Wildlife Rescue link
7/9/2012 06:01:06 am

Ahhh, but there's a special joy in seeing them go back into the wild, where they belong, and knowing that they've been given a second chance at life!

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Uwestsider
7/10/2012 04:07:20 am

Wow...your pix are sooo vivid. Help a lot to understand what you see and how deeply your little charges can affect you. Screech owl a riot!! like a two-year-old playing peek-a-boo. Love the pix of the finches too. And I just love hearing who's ready for the flight pen. Thanks A Lot!!! So glad for the releases.

Reply
Laurens Wildlife Rescue link
7/10/2012 07:40:27 am

Thanks, UW! Screeches are always funny when they try to disappear by closing their eyes, and the finches were just too perfectly lined up not to snap a pic of them!

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neener/ Phigment Imagination
7/10/2012 11:02:14 am

Barn swallows/pigpen... really? Loved the peek a boo!! You take such amazing pics Vonda! Sorry about the wood ducks~ you know ducks 'n geese are my favorites. But my neurosurgeon agrees that watching raptors rip prey apart is also good therapy for me~ (rather than me attempting to do same to people to alleviate the stress they are causing me!! ROFL!! ) :) Was so happy the fund raiser went well. You are 3rd on list if lottery numbers ever come thru and that is a promise! Glad you got a small break before the bang July started with and that cooler weather is permitting more to go to the flight pen now as well!! You are in my thoughts and prayers woman! Keep up the good work! And edit as you see fit- just realized how happy I am to have power and now internet back!! (Sorry) Jean

Reply
Laurens Wildlife Rescue link
7/10/2012 03:21:31 pm

Thanks Neener, and LMAO at the raptors ripping prey apart as therapy. Never thought about it that way, but hey, makes sense to me! Glad your power's back on--still quite a few folks in you area without power, aren't there?

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