Not that I’m complaining—not a bit! After a hectic baby bird season, slow is good; slow is much appreciated.
The squirrels should be on their way to release this weekend; no updated photos of them, as they’re just too quick these days and it’s not worth the risk of escape before they’re fully ready.
The doves are still in the flight pen and will probably be released within the next week. The slight nerve damage to the Eurasian collared’s foot is proving to be insignificant for him, which is good. In his photo below, you can see the faint black band that gives his species its name. It will darken as he ages, to become more distinct. They’re flying beautifully, but because doves, as Columbiformes, are fed and weaned differently than Passerines (most other songbirds), I want to make absolutely sure they’re eating well on their own before they’re released. Currently, I’m still hand-feeding them once a day.
The squirrels should be on their way to release this weekend; no updated photos of them, as they’re just too quick these days and it’s not worth the risk of escape before they’re fully ready.
The doves are still in the flight pen and will probably be released within the next week. The slight nerve damage to the Eurasian collared’s foot is proving to be insignificant for him, which is good. In his photo below, you can see the faint black band that gives his species its name. It will darken as he ages, to become more distinct. They’re flying beautifully, but because doves, as Columbiformes, are fed and weaned differently than Passerines (most other songbirds), I want to make absolutely sure they’re eating well on their own before they’re released. Currently, I’m still hand-feeding them once a day.
The only new intake this past week was an adult male black vulture. His left wing had been broken and healed in the wild; unfortunately, the bone had healed at an awkward angle that made it impossible for him to fly. He had been down a while and was rail-thin, as well, but that we could have corrected with good meals. If he had possessed a decent temperament, he might have been placeable as an educational bird, but he was the most aggressive vulture I’ve ever come across—NOT a good candidate for an ed bird. We made the decision to euthanize, which is often more difficult for me with vultures than with other birds because of the high level of intelligence you can see in their eyes. I’ll not argue that they’re unattractive birds—although black vultures are actually not that bad-looking—but they make up for lack of looks with high levels of intelligence.
And the flying squirrel continues to be impossibly cute, as are all flyers, and is growing like a little weed. This week he finally started showing an interest in solid foods, so he’s definitely making progress!
Finally, last week we had a drizzly, cool day that ended with this gorgeous rainbow—enjoy!
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