Evening star., 1947-06-13
This and That
BIZ Charles E. TrdcepeH.
QUINCY STREET.

Dear Sir:
IT was most interested In the letter from
Malcolm Davis in regard to the care of f1edg-
lings.
"I have discovered on picking up these young
birds from the roads, streets or lawns that very
often they are too young to perch on branches
or tWigs of trees or shrubs, and several times
when I have found fedgling have placed
him in a small basket with some grass to lie
on and hung the basket In the tree, and have
watched with much interest the mother bird
standing on the edge of the basket feeding her
babies.
"I do so enjoy all your articles and the many
interesting letters.
Sincerely yours, NJ S. c."
This method of handling baby birds fallen
from the nest is one of the best.
Often it is impossible to put young one back
In its own nest.
Often, too, it Is almost as hard for one to
take over the half-hour feeding schedule Of
the parent birds.
Such a baby bird is lost unless something
is done for it, and the basket or berry box
lined with grasses or soft tissue makes good
temporary home.
The parents will see and feed the baby in
such an improvised nest. They mostly show
no fear, coming down within few minutes.
There can be little question that bird par
ents have genuine sorrow at the loss from the
nest of one of their young.
Days have gone into the accomplishment of
the nest building, the brooding, Matching and
feeding of the young.
To lose part of the venture at the very end
which is the real beginning Of a new life in the
airs q tragedy which we may feel sure the
parent birds thoroughly understand Their
minds are not as ours, but they are minds, nev-
erthelsss touched with not little of the i'm
mortal fire. In these small brains, adequate
for all their purposes, we may suppose some
sparks to reside of the nature of all things. No
longer is it possible to speak of dumb animals"
as If they were really dumb. We know today
that their talk" is both intelligent and mean
ingfuI It is impossible to believe that birds
do not comprehend fully what happens when
baby tumbles or is blown from the nest. They
must know that its chances are small unless
it can be gotten back on bough or in fork of
tree, or in something to which the parents
may fly. This is a tragedy, truly, for by them
selves, despite all their work and affection
doubt not that they have the second they can
do nothing.
No parent bird is capable of getting baby
back into the nest. It simply Is not equipped
for it, Here is where the helping hand of man
comes in. Our superior brain enables us both
to understand the problem of the fallen young
and then to do something about 1t. And that,
of course is where the human hand comes in.
Without hands, humans, too, would be helpless
in such situation
Placed back on bough, or in fork of two
large branches, the baby bird may tumble out
again.
In basket or berry box, he is safe for the
time being.
Some species, such as the cardinals, take
several days. sometimes as much as week,
after the baby birds are on the edge OF the
nest, and perched outside it, to take to the
wing.
Others such as the blue jay require longer in
the nest. Three weeks in the nest, for them,
after hatching-and then suddenly, presto
away they go!
But in the waiting period, for full feathering
and full wing strength. baby birds are quite
helpless. They want food and plenty OF it.
They need safeguarding from predatory crea-
lures, including such bird predators as owls
and grackles Snakes and squirrels may at
tack them. The bird left to its fate on the
ground is almost sure of death. In the tree
it has the best chance; in the proper nest, the
most, but in basket or box, almost as much.
Before taking over the job of raising
young bird ''by hand friends of birds should
do everything possible to let the mother and
father continue the work. They not only do 1t
best, but the training they give is better for
the young creature. Their own morale" is
kept higher. necessity today for birds as well
as people. We two-legged things ought to stick
together.