On that basket was a note that said, "Please take care of this baby bird."
Inside the basket was,
 |
| You guess it, a baby bird. A dove, in fact. |
People, please. Think. Any "baby" bird that is fully fledged, in other words that has all of its feathers, is not an orphan in need of help, even if it is on the ground!
It was a juvenile that was trying to learn to fly, probably with mom and dad hovering nearby, when some misguided soul decided it was an orphan that needed rescuing.
Please, don't be that misguided soul!
When i called the wildlife rehab hospital to ask if they had someone there who could receive it, the lady told me that yes, they did. When i explained the whole situation, that it was a juvenile dove someone grabbed up thinking it was in trouble and then dumped on us, she said it wasn't the first kidnapping of the day.
Yes, when you take a baby/juvenile animal that is not really orphaned, they call it a kidnapping. Tongue in cheek, of course, but it's pretty accurate.
They get a lot of kidnappings this time of year, she told me, especially of small birds that are just trying to learn to fly.
If you find what you think is an orphaned animal, unless it is being stalked by a predator, is obviously injured, or is so tiny and young it can't survive on its own and you watch from a safe distance and no parent animal comes near, leave it alone, please.
It's not true that the parents will reject a baby you put back in the nest. If you find a very tiny bird, and you see the nest, put it back, please.
If you have observed for a while and it becomes obvious the baby is orphaned, or it has to have help right away, please do not foist it on an unsuspecting neighbor, either. Just because i am in cat rescue doesn't mean i know anything about birds, raccoons, opossums, or any other critters. Call the department of wildlife in your area if you have to, but please don't just make it someone else's problem.
Had the person who found it knocked at the door, i would have explained that the bird wasn't in danger, was learning to fly, and needed to be put back where they found it. Instead of being trained and raised by its parents, it's now going to be fed by people and trained to find food by people and taught to fly by people and released into what we hope will be a normal life for a dove, but we can't be sure.
On a similar note, and please do not read the rest of this paragraph if you don't want sad news, you've been warned -- the injured hawk Sweetie and Ms. G rescued and took to that same wildlife rehab hospital a couple of weeks ago did not make it. It had a crushed pelvis, and nothing could be done.
Today is:
Betty Boop Day -- she debuted in "Dizzy Dishes" on this day in 1930
Book Lover's Day -- internet generated, but if you love books, go sit under a shady tree with a cool drink and indulge!
Carnival Tuesday -- Granada
Clean Out the Kitchen Cupboards Day -- because someone, somewhere, thought it would be a good day to remind us to get rid of the junk in there we haven't seen since last year
Dag der Inheemsen -- Suriname (Indigenous People's Day)
Defense Forces Day -- Zimbabwe
Festival for Sol -- Ancient Roman Calendar
Fox Hill Day -- Nassau, Bahamas (final day of their Emancipation celebrations)
Goblin Ugly Contest -- Fairy Calendar
Independence Day / National Day -- Singapore(1965)
International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples -- UN
International Sundance -- Manitoba, Canada (an extraordinary gathering of Elders from many Native traditions around the world, to perform the sacred Sundance of the Lakota people and sacred ceremonies of the other traditions represented; through Saturday)
Jesse Owens Day -- the day he became the first American to win 4 gold medals
Nagasaki Day / Moment of Silence -- Japan
National Hand Holding Day -- sponsored by Adrienne Sioux Koopersmith of Chicago
National Rice Pudding Day
National Women's Day -- South Africa
Qi Xi -- China (Double Seventh or Chinese Valentine's Day, the 7th day of the 7th moon, the day all the magpies in the world form a bridge so the cowherd and the weaver can meet across the Milky Way, which separates them.)
Remembrance for Radbod, King of the Frisians -- Asatru/Norse Pagan
Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross' Day (born Edith Stein, killed at Auschwitz; Co-Patron of Europe; Patron of converts, martyrs, those who have lost their parents, World Youth Day)
Smokey the Bear Day -- Smokey first appeared on a U.S. Forest Service poster on this day in 1944
Veep Day -- US (commemoration of the day in 1974 Richard Nixon's resignation let Gerald Ford succeed to the presidency)
World's Fair of Money -- Anaheim, CA, US (the greatest money show on Earth, including dealers, exhibits from around the world, family activities and educational programs; through Saturday)
Yosakoi Matsuri -- Kochi City, Japan (over 100 groups come up with their own Bon dance and costume and have dance competions in the streets, through the 12th)
Anniversaries Today:
Coronation of Albert II of Belgium, 1993
Birthdays Today:
Audrey Tautou,1976
Eric Bana, 1968
Gillian Anderson, 1968
Delon Sanders, 1967
Hoda Kotb, 1964
Whitney Houston, 1963
Michael Kors, 1959
Amanda Bearse, 1958
Melanie Griffith, 1957
Sam Elliot, 1944
David Steinberg, 1942
Robert Joseph (Bob) Cousy, 1928
P.L. Travers, 1899
Joseph Locke, 1805
Amedeo Avogadro, 1776
John Dryden, 1631
Izaak Walton, 1593
Debuting/Premiering Today:
"Béatrice et Bénédict (Beatrice and Benedick)"(Berlioz Opera Comique), 1862
Walden(Thoreau, publication date), 1854
Today in History:
Battle of Pharsalus, in which Julius Caesar defeated Pompey, who fled to Egypt, BC 40
Bulgaria is founded as a Khanate on the south bank of the Danube after defeating the Byzantine armies of Emperor Constantine IV south of the Danube delta, 681
Start of construction of the Tower of Pisa, 1173*
Sistine Chapel opens, 1483
First horses arrive in Hawai'i, 1803
The Webster-Ashburton Treaty is signed, establishing the United States-Canada border east of the Rocky Mountains, 1842
Thoreau's Walden is published, 1854
Thomas Edison receives a patent for a two-way telegraph, 1892
Betty Boop makes her debut in the cartoon, Dizzy Dishes, 1930
Mahatma Gandhi is arrested in Bombay by British forces, launching the Quit India Movement, 1942
The United States Forest Service and the Wartime Advertising Council release posters featuring Smokey Bear for the first time, 1944
Singapore is expelled from Malaysia and becomes the first and only country to date to gain independence unwillingly, 1965
Richard Nixon becomes the first President of the United States to resign from office, 1974
Wayne Gretzky is traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings in one of the most controversial player transactions in ice hockey history, 1988
The Liberal Democratic Party of Japan loses a 38-year hold on national leadership, 1993
Tensions escalate between North and South Korea, when South Korea claims North Korea fired over 100 rounds of artillery into the Sea of Japan, 2010
David Rudisha of Kenya becomes the first athlete at the 2012 Summer Olympics to set a new world track record and secures the 800m gold medal, 2012
*completed two hundred years later
awww. those parents must have been frantic...
ReplyDeleteLike you say, let nature be, and if you want to be a kind soul dropping a "problem" off on another and running is just wrong!!
ReplyDeleteI did know that about baby birds but lots of people don't. Sorry about the hawk.
ReplyDeleteThey mean well, but they aren't doing the bird any favors. Not to mention the parents. That must be awful for them too. I also see everyone thinks you can fix anything.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry about the hawk. Sad news indeed.
Have a fabulous day and thanks for the lesson on what and what not to do concerning baby birds. ☺
This is a very good lesson for everyone. There was a case recently where well-meaning people loaded a baby bison in their car to rescue it. UGH. If in doubt, call the experts before removing anything from it's natural environment! I am sorry about the hawk, it's flying free in Heaven now! <3
ReplyDeleteThat is too bad about the hawk, at least it had help. That is a strange story, if someone thought the bird was in need, they should have tried to help instead of passing it off.
ReplyDeleteGod advice. People often want to be helpful but the best thing to do in most instances is to leave the baby animals alone.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about the hawk. I'm constantly amazed by the number of people who think they are doing the right thing by interfering with nature. I hope this poor little kidnap victim makes it.
ReplyDeleteGreat Post! Thank you for educating people about this. One note:
ReplyDeleteBirds also have a poor sense of smell, so you really can, if you know where the nest is, put the baby back up in it. If the tree's too tall, you can also try placing the baby in the tree as high as possible, so the parents can find and feed it.
Here, the resident Dove pair set several nests, one right after the other starting in March, they lose so many babies to hawks. The babies go to ground when they fledge, and parents come once a day to feed them.