Trevor's Week - 15 April 2009
Happy Easter to you all! Spring has definitely sprung and we are starting to get more and more calls about garden birds and nests.
It is very easy to assume a bird has been abandoned when you find it on the ground but quite often it is a fledgling learning to fly.
When a fledgling takes its first flight it is going to be unsuccessful, and it is natural for them to spend anything from two days to a week on the ground before they can fly properly, depending on the species.
Mum and Dad will normally be near by but they do not always fly down to feed every few minutes as they are trying to encourage the youngster to fly.
Both the youngster and the parents are good at hiding themselves. Parent birds will encourage their young to disperse into different hideaways, where they will carry on feeding them. This is nature's way of spreading the risk of the youngsters getting taken by a predator.
Clustered in the nest, they would be easy prey for any bird or other animal that detected it.
This natural system of dispersal has worked for millions of years and has worked successfully.
Some will be taken, as these small garden birds form part of nature's food chain, helping other wild animals and birds to survive.
For this reason, young and fledgling birds should be left alone. However, there are some situations of man-made origin that means you should intervene.
There are two stages at which birds are found: as a chick and as a fledgling.
If you find a fledgling (a bird covered in feathers, with little or no fluff) you should leave it alone unless:
• There are nearby environmental hazards such as roads or pools
• The fledgling is injured in any way
• The parents have definitely been killed or incapacitated
• The fledglings are of a species known to be ignored once they have left the nest prematurely, eg, tawny owls, heron or swifts
This is a complex issue. Some species of baby birds, such as ducklings and pheasant chicks, are able to feed themselves straight after hatching, but other species, such as moorhen and partridge, need help.
You can reduce the chances of a young bird surviving by bringing it into care and hand- rearing it. It is surprising how many avoid capture by cats and other prey by hiding in bushes and vegetation.
The risk of being caught by a cat or prey is frequently less than the risk of feeding it the wrong moisture content.
Its mum is best at preparing the baby's food; we can only guess at what it is used to and can easily get it wrong.
It is not uncommon for WRAS to receive calls from people who have fed a baby bird milk. Birds do not have breasts and do not produce milk. This is bad for their digestive system. Seek advice as soon as possible.
Every year WRAS is also asked to take on birds that have been hand-reared on their own or as a pair and have become domesticated.
It is important that birds are not reared on their own but with others of their own species to ensure they learn life survival skills and compete for food.
Handling should be kept to a minimum to ensure they are not tamed and can be released back into the wild.
A big thank-you to those who have contacted Tim about volunteering at our Casualty Care Centre.
There are a some vacancies left, so please contact him on 07969 464052.
We are limited on the number of baby birds we can take on this year, so if you have any experience and would be interested in learning the latest techniques in hand-rearing baby birds to help us save baby wildlife then please give Tim a ring for more details.
Don't forget our spring fair on Saturday, April 18 from 9.30am until midday at the Clinton Centre, opposite Barclays Bank, in Seaford Town Centre.
You can also book places for our next Waterfowl Awareness Course at Crossways, Steyne Road, Seaford, on April 28 at the fair or you can book by sending a cheque for 7.50 – payable to East Sussex WRAS – to the address above.
In addition, you can turn up on the night, where entry is 10 per person. All money goes towards helping WRAS rescue sick, injured and orphaned animals.
East Sussex WRAS is a voluntary organisation which relies on donations. We do not receive funding from government nor the RSPCA. Anyone wishing to make a donation should contact The Treasurer at PO Box 2148, Seaford, East Sussex, BN25 9DE. www.wildlifeambulance.org 24-hour rescue line: 07815 078 234
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Weather for Eastbourne
Sunday 27 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 22 C
Wind Speed: 16 mph
Wind direction: South east
Tomorrow
Light showers
Temperature: 13 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: West
