Weather delays and a release

With a rainy first half of the week, followed by a cold second half, the weather just refused to cooperate for the planned barnie and flyer releases. Better weather’s predicted for this week, though, so…fingers crossed!
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As for the tiniest flyer, the wee pinkie—well, she’s not pink anymore! Her fur is coming in nicely, and as of yesterday, she’s up to 22g. Compare that to her intake weight of 7.4g—the gal ain’t missin’ any meals!  She’s a somewhat messier eater these days, necessitating rub-downs at the least and outright baths at the worst, so she’s dampish in most of the photos and video below.

2-28-17

3-2-17

3-3-17

3-4-17

​The red-shouldered hawk who came in with the swollen eye and nasty concussion was released yesterday, and boy, was he ready to go! Barely had time to focus the camera for a release video, and forget post-release photos. He didn’t hang around—headed straight into the woods.

Now, some of you may be asking, “But if the weather was too cold to release the barnies and flyers, why did you release the red-shoulder?” Excellent question! And here’s your answer: The red-shoulder was an adult bird. He’d spent the entire winter in the elements, so the cold wasn’t new to him. This is not the case for the barnies and flyers, who were babies in the fall and juvies in the winter. To have the best chance at survival after release, they need at least three days of balmy, rain-free weather to give them time to locate food sources and shelter.
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That said, as I indicated earlier, the weather looks good for release for both sets of overwintering guests this week. 

Nothing to see in the video below; just LISTEN. That's what a vocalizing flyer sounds like!

​The only new intake was a Canada goose who was found near a pond, lethargic and unable/unwilling to fly. She was brought to LWR, where she died during the intake exam. She was rail-thin, but I have no clue what caused the emaciation. Did she eat a lead sinker and die of lead poisoning or had she been fed too much bread, which is bad for ALL birds? We’ll never know, since rehabbers in Georgia don’t have access to free necropsies from UGA and few of us are willing to spend money that can better be used to save wildlife on finding out what killed a specific intake.

No new pix of the sharpie or titmouse this week—I mean, there are only so many poses a bird in a box can strike, y’know? The sharpie is due for follow-up x-rays later this week, and the titmouse still shows no signs of feather regrowth. And he’s breaking my heart—the hormones are in full swing, and he’s sitting in there singing his heart out, trying to attract a mate…I wish those missing feathers would hurry up and grow back in!

And for those who may not have seen this news, flocks of cedar waxwings in Decatur (the metro-Atlanta area, for non-Georgians) have been dying from eating nonnative nandina, aka “heavenly bamboo.” If you have nandina in your yard or anywhere on your property, PLEASE get rid of it. Here’s a link to the article, which also offers advice on killing the stumps once you’ve cut it. You may want to verify with your local extension agent or Master Gardener, though.

http://www.decaturish.com/2017/03/invasive-bushes-in-decatur-killing-cedar-waxwings/

And every state should have a Native Plant Society that will be willing to provide advice on ridding your property of nonnative invasives and replacing them with native plants that will actually benefit our native wildlife. The Georgia Native Plant Society can be found at http://gnps.org/.