We received a frustrating— and all-too-common— call yesterday. After barn swallows chose an apartment complex in Red Bank to raise their young, management hired a crew to pressure-wash the nests away, resulting in the deaths of many innocent baby birds. The few survivors were picked up by a caring tenant, who we referred to aContinue reading “Native Bird Nests are Legally Protected”
Tag Archives: birds
Songbird Fever in Cats: A Warning
Have you seen the warnings we’ve posted about the salmonella epidemic affecting songbirds? There’s another side of it too, and it’s one I have firsthand experience with. I hope that this warning might save both birds and cats. This is my daughter, and this is her best friend, Happy. As an advocate for both wildlifeContinue reading “Songbird Fever in Cats: A Warning”
Litter isn’t Nesting Material for Birds
As we get closer to spring, you‘ll likely start seeing memes and blogs suggesting that you help birds build their nests by leaving materials like yarn, string, human hair, and pet hair outside. Please, please don’t do this! Wild birds don’t need help to find nesting materials. They’re everywhere and birds instinctively know where toContinue reading “Litter isn’t Nesting Material for Birds”
Checking on Bird Nest Boxes
Are you one of the amazing people who helps bluebirds and other native cavity-nesting birds by providing them with nest boxes? Excellent! Please be careful so that your efforts to help dont accidentally harm. While a lot of bird enthusiasts like to watch for signs of predators, parasites, and competitors, there can still be dangerContinue reading “Checking on Bird Nest Boxes”
Nandina Berries Kill Birds in Winter
Nandina is one of the most common ornamental plants in our area. It’s marketed under many names, including “heavenly bamboo,” but it is neither heavenly nor bamboo. It’s a highly invasive and poisonous domestic plant that can kill animals in your neighborhood. Nandina owes its popularity to the fact that it’s a brightly colored evergreenContinue reading “Nandina Berries Kill Birds in Winter”
The Chuck-Will’s-Widow
Look at this bizarre-looking cutie pie! This is a chuck-will’s-widow. It looks like a weird new Pokemon, and— just like a Pokémon— it says its name! Like its close cousin the whippoorwill, the chuck-will’s-widow is rarely seen because it’s nocturnal and well-camouflaged. If you’re lucky, though, you may hear its characteristic high-pitched call at night.Continue reading “The Chuck-Will’s-Widow”
Trees Don’t Litter
If you’d ever seen how quickly our raccoon patients can devour twenty pounds of acorns or forage through six inches of fallen leaves for bugs, you’d understand exactly why there’s no need to “clean up” the gifts trees leave us in autumn! Many native animals in our area cannot survive winter without the bounty ofContinue reading “Trees Don’t Litter”
That Friendly Animal May Not Be Your Reincarnated Loved One
Ok here’s what I wrote and it will go live tomorrow. Thank you guys! The world works in mysterious ways, and people can find messages hidden in anything. Grief is painful, and it’s only human nature to look for signs that our loved ones are still with us. Sometimes we come across animals in ourContinue reading “That Friendly Animal May Not Be Your Reincarnated Loved One”
“I found a dead bird. Should I save the babies?”
Even the very best rehabilitators can’t care for baby birds as well as the their natural parents, so we always make it a priority to keep baby animals with their families whenever possible. Unfortunately, some baby birds end up in rehabilitation because well-meaning people kidnap them. It’s not uncommon for someone to find a deadContinue reading ““I found a dead bird. Should I save the babies?””
Fledglings Aren’t Orphans
Have you ever seen a human toddler in their first days on their feet? They stumble, waddle, and often fall… but it doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong or that they don’t have parents looking out for them. The awkward first days of toddling are just part of how humans learn and grow. That’s how itContinue reading “Fledglings Aren’t Orphans”
