No Fourth-related pun intended; it just seems July is gonna compensate for a slower than usual June. Been a weird, sorta topsy-turvy year anyway, so why not?
Last Sunday evening I got in a single pre-fledgling cardinal, apparently female. The next day, I got in a pre-fledgling male cardinal at about the same stage of development but from a different area. The little female was vocal, alert and hungry from the get-go; the little male less so. You can see the contrast between their behaviors in the video clip below.
Last Sunday evening I got in a single pre-fledgling cardinal, apparently female. The next day, I got in a pre-fledgling male cardinal at about the same stage of development but from a different area. The little female was vocal, alert and hungry from the get-go; the little male less so. You can see the contrast between their behaviors in the video clip below.
We struggled with the male for several days before he finally decided to check out of the LWR bed & breakfast. At one point, I really thought I had him on the road to eventual release with the female, but then he relapsed.
The same day the first cardinal came in, I also received an adult Mississippi kite from a regional game warden. He and some other game wardens found it grounded and bleeding on one of the Wildlife Management Areas (WMA). The bleeding wasn’t from an open fracture, although the wing was broken. It was a fresh injury and still swollen, so I wasn’t sure how bad the break was. The next morning I took him to Smalley’s Animal Hospital where, since the swelling had gone down considerably overnight, vet Peggy Hobby found numerous additional fractures without even needing an x-ray. Basically, the bones of his wing were shattered—palpably so. We had no choice but to euthanize.
The same day the first cardinal came in, I also received an adult Mississippi kite from a regional game warden. He and some other game wardens found it grounded and bleeding on one of the Wildlife Management Areas (WMA). The bleeding wasn’t from an open fracture, although the wing was broken. It was a fresh injury and still swollen, so I wasn’t sure how bad the break was. The next morning I took him to Smalley’s Animal Hospital where, since the swelling had gone down considerably overnight, vet Peggy Hobby found numerous additional fractures without even needing an x-ray. Basically, the bones of his wing were shattered—palpably so. We had no choice but to euthanize.
The crow, whom my niece dubbed Igor when she was visiting for the Fourth and helping me feed, continues to develop nicely. It’s now my opinion that he fledged too early and that was the reason he was unable to fly. He’s just now started to “fly in place” on his perch as he tests and strengthens his wings for real flight. Typical corvid, Igor is alert, inquisitive and talkative. I’m doing a pretty good job of imitating whatever he’s saying and he seems happy with my “replies”, so I guess I’m not tossing insults at him!
The person who brought me this hit-by-car (HBC) mud turtle was concerned that he’d get hit again. His wounds were actually old and already healing nicely, so all I needed to do was clean him up a bit, medicate the shell wounds to be on the safe side, and release him after a 24 observation period.
My sweet little blue jay suddenly developed foot problems. His feet started turning inward and “drawing” like a stroke victim’s hands. I refuse to allow this bird to end up unreleasable after coming in as a 2-day old hatchling and making it to this point, so I rigged him some “snowshoes” that force his feet into the correct position. It’s making a huge difference in his activity level: when his feet started drawing, he started just sitting in the nest and not even lifting his little butt to poop. Now he’s hopping, albeit awkwardly, all over his carrier and even attempting to perch…which, of course, is an exercise in frustration for him right now!
When this little hatchling came in on the Fourth, I really didn’t think it would last the night. To my surprise and delight, it was not only alive but gaping and peeping for food the next morning. Unfortunately, as the day wore on, it stopped gaping first, then stopped peeping, and finally died in the short interval between its 2:00pm and 2:20pm feedings. I have no clue what the sweet, sad little baby would have grown up to be…
Yesterday, yet another mocker came in. This one had been part of a nest of three babies, but the people who found them on the Fourth fed them nothing but bread soaked in water for two days. By the time they called me, one was dead, one was dying, and this poor fellow wasn’t looking great when I got him. Folks, a) when you find wildlife in need of help, CALL A REHABBER ASAP; b) NEVER, but NEVER feed bread—or milk, for that matter—to ANY wildlife, especially birds. THINK, people! It’s the early bird gets the worm, NOT the early bird gets the loaf of bread and gallon of milk!
Earlier today, these adorable little Carolina wren nestlings came in. They were found late yesterday in the taillight of a truck used for mud bogging—AFTER the mud bogging was over—and the finders called me to see what needed to be done to keep them alive until they could get them to me this morning. I’m happy to say they did everything I recommended and I received the wrens in good shape. Wrens are, as I’ve mentioned before, very stressy little birds, and these babies are cowering at the slightest noise right now. They are, however, less shy about eating!
The older blue jay and the blue grosbeak are still in the flight pen, awaiting a break in the rainy weather to be released. The yellow-billed cuckoo is proving to be quite an escape artist; nearly every time I feed her, I end up chasing her down after she escapes from her box and flits around the rehab room. For a bird missing part of her wing, she flies pretty darn well! As soon as she’s off her meds, I plan to put her in the flight pen, too, to see what she’s actually capable of. Below is a video of her behavior now when she’s fed—and I’m still hand-feeding because she refuses to self-feed on anything I’ve offered her thus far.
RSS Feed
