The arrival of spring brings many changes to our natural surroundings. Flowers bloom, barren trees fill with leaves, and occasionally, baby birds come tumbling out of those trees. If you’ve ever encountered one of these not-quite-flighted chicks and wondered how best to look after them, you’ve come to the right place.Â
Your first aim upon finding a chick out of its nest is to work out whether it has accidentally fallen or is simply taking its first steps out of the nest. Siân Denney, who has had six years of wildlife experience for the Royal Society of the Protection of Birds, says you should determine if the bird is a nestling or fledgling. “Nestlings are the tiny, tiny babies with no feathers, and they’re at very early stages and very vulnerable,” says Denney. In contrast, fledglings have feathers but may lack the flight feathers needed to take to the skies.Â
Helping a nestling
If the bird you’ve found is a featherless nestling, it will be at risk if left out of the nest. “The amount of care that birds require is intense. It is unlikely that a very young bird that age that’s got no feathers will survive if it is out of the nest,” says George Bradley, who works for wildlife charity SongBird Survival.
If you know which nest the bird has fallen from you should place it back in. Denney and Bradley advise that gloves should be worn for handling birds as a hygiene measure. Some people believe that if a well-meaning human handles a bird, its parents will cease to recognize its scent and reject it. This is a myth, says Denney. “Birds actually have a terrible sense of smell,” she says.Â
Garden bird species will usually make their nests in hedges or trees. However, other species, like gulls or sparrows, make their homes on rooftops or the underside of eaves. By watching to see if its parents appear to try to help it, you may be able to work out where its nest is hidden and whether it is accessible. If you can’t identify which nest a nestling has fallen from, it will still need to be moved off the ground, where it will be helpless against predators. The best option is to elevate the nestling. Placing them in a bucket or empty flower pot can protect them while still making it easy for their parents to find them.Â
Helping a fledgling
Denney has different advice if the bird you come across is a feathered fledgling. “They should just be left alone,” she says. “They’ve attempted to leave the nest because they’re ready to take to life outside and beyond,” she adds. Their parents will likely be surreptitiously monitoring them to check they have learned how to fly independently. Denney adds that fledglings can spend days or weeks on their ground as they learn to fly. If the bird is in obvious and immediate danger—your local cat is eyeing it up, for example—it can also be shooed somewhere more secure, like a bush or tree.Â
How to help an injured bird
If a fallen bird is injured, it might be time to contact a local wildlife rehabilitator. These are experts who volunteer to care for sick or injured birds. These resources will vary by state. Humane World for Animals has a detailed list of rescuers and rehabilitators.Â
The overarching message is that baby birds eventually need to fly from their nest, and unless they are too young or in danger, leaving them alone to learn how to navigate the big, new world they find themselves in is the best course of action.Â
Humans can also proactively help by avoiding activities that put baby birds at risk of falling in the first place. Denney says that cutting trees or hedges aggressively or without checking for any nesting birds during the summer months can lead to disturbed or destroyed nests. Before you cut, says Denney, “check the area first for a couple of days. If you see signs of activity, it’s best just to postpone that cutting to let those birds nest in peace.”
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