Bird Cams Around the World

Thanks for the picture, Antilogical. That's one cute baby groundhog you're feeding!

He's as cute as a baby opossum!

Oh YEAH!!! Thought I was strictly a raptor-lover, but it turns out I love mammals, too!

You'd love the raccoon babies at Lindsay Wildlife hospital :) and the baby pied-billed grebe at IBRRC :)

I've talked so much about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. I'm not there, of course. I'm in Cordelia (it's actually a Fairfield address right next to the tiny village of Cordelia).



Last week our Guinea Fowl eggs hatched, and the keets were in one of our large shore bird boxes in ICU. Every effort is made to make them feel at home and give them the right care and food. There were about ten of them, all very active at 2 days old.

We put a feather duster in their box, and one of them managed to pluck out one of the feathers. Away he went, running across the shorebird box, around the shallow pan of water, down the side, and around the food container. Of course, the rest of them chased after him, and one managed to grab the feather out of his beak and run the other way. And then they were off again. These tiny legs, moving so fast, excited peeps! After all of that, they settled down into a soft clump, under their special heat lamp, and went to sleep. They woke up about fifteen minutes later, got something to eat, and it was the mad dash around the box with the feather once more.

I noticed that one of them had feces stuck to his vent, so I had to remove it with a cotton ball soaked in warm water. While doing that, he managed to poop again, so I knew his vent was clear. And I saw his very tiny belly button. He did not enjoy the procedure and was glad to be back with his brothers and sisters, joining in the never-ending game of "keep-away."

NB: That is a picture of another group of keets... I forgot to bring my camera, but I would have been to busy to use it anyway.

Antilogical...nice to see the groundhog rescue!!

Beans, 400 ducks? Wow! What are the annual intake numbers there? You must have tons of passerines, or do other groups take them? I love the heron pic! That is one ferocious looking baby.
How long will your group stay in Louisiana? This looks like it might be a long term problem.

We are over 400 ducklings now. Perhaps 450. However, we don't keep them very long. We take them (or they are picked up by) to Rancho Esquon, where they have a wonderful outdoor place, complete with water, grasses, and food. They are released into the wetlands when they are five weeks old. You can read about their egg salvaging program below:

Rancho Esquon

Our team will stay in the Gulf as long as they need to be there. Most people are paying their own way and there may be no reimbursement from the oil company.

This letter appeared in the SF Chronicle on Saturday, May 15:

The blame starts with us

We are all guilty for the oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. Were it not for our consumptive love affair for oil, maybe, just maybe, the accident might not have occurred.

Congress is also remiss in this disaster for kowtowing to the powerful oil industry and not legislating for fail-safe guards for oil tankers and oil derricks.

Do we really need that leaf blower instead of a rake? Do we really need to speed to the store in our SUV, then drive around the parking lot looking for the parking spot closest to the door? If only - and this is a hard habit for us consumptive Americans to change - we could slow down and ask ourselves, "Is this trip necessary?", maybe we would not have to "drill, baby, drill," and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge could be protected forever.

Nothing is more heartbreaking than to see dying wildlife struggling to stay alive while coated with oil. Think about these images the next time you start up that SUV. Conserve, baby, conserve.

Here's another perfect release of an eagle. Note that he is allowed to walk out of the carrier and isn't thrown up in the air:

Eagle Release

Beautiful video of the eagle release--thanks, Beans!

Hawk chick delivered to me last night. We really thought he was a goner, but he was very feisty by noon. He's now in the hands of our raptor expert, who also bandaged a flicker I have with a broken wing.

Oh Barb, that baby hawk is sooooo cute! I was just getting caught up on the Columbus posts - and all the drama with your rescued hawk - and had to come over here to see the picture. I'm so glad the baby made it through the night and is now with the raptor expert.

I agree with SGB - We should start calling you Florence Nightingale!

So cute...what do you think is his age? I was thinking maybe three weeks based on all the feathers?

sgb, pedialyte or gatorade is what you give them to hydrate them, or inject fluids. With baby birds I just use my finger to leak a tiny drop on the tip of their beak. The hawk got drops by a dropper, and he was a good drinker :) Plus he had a heating pad and a dark quiet bed.

Birds breathe through a hole in the back of their throat, so you can drown them if you use a dropper with a little baby. Once they are hydrated and have a normal poop, they can get fed. We use soaked purina one kitten chow, monkey chow, and exact (a baby formula for birds). Our vets just use soaked dog food. The hawk is going to get canned cat food (a special kind that I didn't have).

Rehabbing is always a team effort. Fortunately there are people to advise and help, especially the wildlife center.