If you encounter an injured animal, contact the Wildlife Information Hotline at
1-800-893-4116. The hotline, which is provided by the DNR Division of Fish and
Wildlife and USDA Wildlife Services, offers advice and referrals on how to handle
nuisance and injured animals.
Care Of Orphaned Birds
First, anyone who finds a baby bird should watch for a while to see if the baby is
truly alone. Not all babies need to be rescued. They may be ready for flight and mama
bird may be close by. (Keep kitty indoors.) If it has no feathers or is
truly abandoned, attempt to locate the nest.
If the nest is found, the baby bird should be returned to the nest. Remember that
birds do not have a true sense of smell, so the myth that birds will reject a baby
bird if touched by a human is not true. A baby bird which has been touched by a human,
however, does make it easier for a predator (cat, raccoon, etc.) to find. If a
nest cannot be located and the bird is "rescued", the first important step
is to provide warmth to the baby bird. A hot water bottle or low heating pad or
even hot water in a glass bottle will do.
If the bird you have found has hit a window or been caught by a cat, place the bird in a box
in a quiet place for about 10 minutes. If the bird does not waken or fly away, call a
rehabilitator. Second, baby birds do not support themselves very well, so creating
a nest-like situation helps support their bodies while feeding. Create a nesting situation
so the baby bird has a place to rest its head.
Nests need to be kept clean, so create the nest with something easy to clean (plastic
berry boxes) and have tissue ready to clean up waste sacs. Paper, cotton and cloth
catches easily in the bird's toenails so it is not the best material to use. Rough paper
towels are okay, grass clippings are damp and cold against baby bodies and should not be used.
A rehabilitator should be called immediately to care for birds which are orphaned. See
the section below for a rehabilitator near you. Taking care of injured birds and
wildlife should be left to people who know how to do it best. The steps above are designed
strictly so that the bird has a chance of survival while you wait for a qualified person
to take over.
Window Strikes
Ever wonder why birds seem to throw themselves at your window?
Birds such as cardinals and robins will dash repeatedly at their reflections in windows.
Such actions are usually because the individual bird, usually a male, mistakenly perceives
another bird in the reflection of the window. It is territorial behavior for the
bird to fight off the "intruder". This behavior, if continued over a period of
weeks or even an entire season, can be annoying to people, but is usually not fatal to
the bird.
On the other hand, when a bird strikes a window in free-flight, it does so with such velocity
that the results are significantly more serious. Sometimes the bird is merely stunned or
sustains superficial injuries from which it may recover, but in over half of all recorded
incidents the impact results in death. This is most common during spring and fall migration,
but can happen at other times of the year. Birds cannot readily distinguish the presence of
a pane of transparent glass from an unobstructed space or passageway. Glass will reflect the
most when it is darker inside than it is outside.
Many people are unaware that birds are being killed at their windows because the victims are
small, frequently fall behind shrubbery, and more often than not are eaten by predators.
Some birds bang into windows because they think they see another bird in their territory, some
birds fly into windows because they don't see the window. Other birds fly into windows because
they are being chased by predators. What ever the reason, you can make your windows safer.
Here are some other steps for making your home windows safe for birds:
With the exception of window feeding shelves, feeders and bird baths should be located a safe distance away from windows.
If feeders are close to the window move them to within three feet so if the birds
"flee" the feeders, they have not built up much speed.
Window screens are a great deterrent but are not practical for many picture windows.
Decals, including cut-outs of raptors, and leaded glass decorations are only moderately successful.
Vertical exterior tape stripes not more than 10 cm apart are a good deterrent.
Interior vertical blinds with the slats half open will cut down on some casualties.
Windows can be soaped to camouflage them. Shade trees planted outside the window
should cut down on some of the reflection.
Banded Birds
If you find a banded Pigeon, you can call (800) 755-2778. For all other banded birds, call (800) 327-BAND.
National Audubon Society and AWBAS Chapter supporters and members: Did you know that you can help us save money, time and trees by becoming a part of our electronic database? By choosing to recieve updates and news via E-mail, you will not only help us to significantly reduce our postage costs but you enable AWBAS to focus more of our resources towards mission-critical tasks and services. -- click here to send your email address to our Membership Chair in order to receive your newsletters and other important updates via E-mail.
Upcoming Events
AWBAS upcoming eventsNovember 13, Tuesday Lecture: The Birds of South Africa
Speaker: Steve Nawrocki, Professor of Biology and Anthropology at the University of Indianapolis
As so many birds have left Indiana for the winter, many birders think about going to other locales to bird. Join Steve Nawrocki at Holliday Park to learn about his nature experiences in a place few of us will get a chance to visit, South Africa. During two recent trips to South Africa he saw about 200 bird species along with many mammals and reptiles, many of which he photographed. His slideshow will focus on the birds of 3 broad ecological zones (thornvelt, high-altitude grassvelt, and marshland) in the northeastern part of the country, including Kruger National Park and the famous Marievale Bird Sanctuary. Break away from Indiana for the night and join us on bird safari.
December 11, Tuesday Lecture: Song-Catcher — Memorable Experiences of a Professional Birdsong Recorder
Speaker: Geoff Keller, Master Song Recorder
It's always a good time to review bird songs and calls while sitting by the fire. Some of the recordings you listen to may have been recorded by our speaker, Geoff Keller, who has recently moved to Nashville, Indiana. Geoff started recording bird songs in 1983 and has worked closely with Cornell University's Laboratory of Ornithology. He has archived almost 3,000 North American bird song recordings with Cornell and has traveled to all the great birding sites from the Florida Keys to Nome, from southern Mexico to Churchill. He is currently working on Bird Songs of the Pacific Northwest. His program will feature some his most memorable recording experiences, such as the Five-striped Sparrow in Sycamore Canyon, Arizona, Mangrove Cuckoo in Sugarloaf Key, Florida, Red-throated Pipit in Nome, Alaska, and Buff-colored Nightjar in the Santa Rita grasslands of Arizona, among others. If you think about how much we depend on the skill of people like Geoff, you will not want to miss his talk on a special Thursday date of December 13.
January 8, Tuesday Lecture: Fall Migrations and Winter Habitats of the Reclusive Northern Saw-whet Owl
Speaker: Ross Brittain, Ph.D. Candidate in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University, Bloomington
In 2002, Ross created and continues to coordinate the first study of Northern Saw-whet Owl migration patterns in southern Indiana. He has also surveyed overwintering populations of Saw-whet Owls to assess their habitat use. He is a Master Bird Bander and Wetland Community Ecologist. Ross is currently working on a Ph.D. in Environmental Affairs, studying avian trophic ecology using stable isotopes, and the potential long-term effects of sea level rise and standard management practices on coastal Georgia avifauna. His project is funded by a Graduate Research Fellowship from NOAA and is conducted at the National Estuarine Research Reserve on Sapelo Island, Georgia. The Northern Saw-whet Owls are thinking about starting a family right about now - you should find out what they are up to! Get the New Year started right by joining us at Holliday Park.
February 12, Tuesday Lecture: The Importance of Indiana's Reclaimed Strip Mines for Grassland Birds
Speaker: Peter Scott, Associate Professor of Ecology and Organismal Biology, Indiana State University, Terre Haute
March 11, Tuesday Lecture: Use of Isolated Wood Lots by Migratory Birds
Speaker: Diane Packett
Diane has been studying how our migrant birds use isolated wood lots. She will update us on her research, which has been supported by funds from the AWBAS Birdathon.
