How weird, I had the same thing happen to me yesterday!! I was working on pottery in my garage with all the doors and windows open and kept hearing a very insisten screeching...at first I thought it was birds fighting as I had seen several mockingbirds flying to and fro. Then I walked out into my driveway and found a baby that looks almost exactly like yours, same age and all, at the base of the stairs that go up the side of my yard to the street. An adult mockingbird kept hopping up and down the steps as if to demonstrate how it was done to the baby, while it kept begging for food. I assumed it was a baby mockingbird, but who knows, they might've just been harassing it. :) I crouched down next to him as it started to sprinkle...and he totally did the old-grumpy-man-thing as he tried to decide if I was gonna eat him. I guess he decided I wouldn't and started begging for food from me. I pet him and chatted with him a bit and commiserated on having no food, all the while expecting a swift peck on the head at any moment. I guess I startled him at some point because he took off and ran into the garage. I chased him around for a bit then returned him to his spot at the base of the stairs. I did see the mockingbirds come back so I hope they were his parents. He kept trying to follow them around when they would flit around the yard...very cute and kind of sad! But he may be a bit older than your bird since he was pretty mobile...practically a fledgling.
When I lived in SD we lost many baby robins every year because the winds there are so strong they were constantly getting blown out of their trees. :(
A few years ago I fostered a fledgling blue jay. His/her name was River and she was absolutely precious! I think she was supposed to be on the ground, but the neighbor kids almost killed her playing with her, so I took her in for a while. Nothing like waking up to blue jay shrieks at five in the morning :) I fed her a combination of chicken feed (from the grocery store!) and dry dog food softened and broken up with water. She did pretty well on that. She would fly all over the house, but her favorite spot was on your shoulder, softly cheeping sweet nothings into your ear. We took her outside with us onto the porch every day and one day she just flew away. A big part of me was hoping she'd stay, but I was also glad that she seemed to have no trouble returning to the wild.
I was working on pottery in my garage with all the doors and windows open and kept hearing a very insisten screeching...at first I thought it was birds fighting as I had seen several mockingbirds flying to and fro. Then I walked out into my driveway and found a baby that looks almost exactly like yours, same age and all, at the base of the stairs that go up the side of my yard to the street. An adult mockingbird kept hopping up and down the steps as if to demonstrate how it was done to the baby, while it kept begging for food. I assumed it was a baby mockingbird, but who knows, they might've just been harassing it. :) I crouched down next to him as it started to sprinkle...and he totally did the old-grumpy-man-thing as he tried to decide if I was gonna eat him. I guess he decided I wouldn't and started begging for food from me. I pet him and chatted with him a bit and commiserated on having no food, all the while expecting a swift peck on the head at any moment. I guess I startled him at some point because he took off and ran into the garage. I chased him around for a bit then returned him to his spot at the base of the stairs. I did see the mockingbirds come back so I hope they were his parents. He kept trying to follow them around when they would flit around the yard...very cute and kind of sad! But he may be a bit older than your bird since he was pretty mobile...practically a fledgling.
When I lived in SD we lost many baby robins every year because the winds there are so strong they were constantly getting blown out of their trees.
:(
A few years ago I fostered a fledgling blue jay. His/her name was River and she was absolutely precious! I think she was supposed to be on the ground, but the neighbor kids almost killed her playing with her, so I took her in for a while. Nothing like waking up to blue jay shrieks at five in the morning :) I fed her a combination of chicken feed (from the grocery store!) and dry dog food softened and broken up with water. She did pretty well on that. She would fly all over the house, but her favorite spot was on your shoulder, softly cheeping sweet nothings into your ear. We took her outside with us onto the porch every day and one day she just flew away. A big part of me was hoping she'd stay, but I was also glad that she seemed to have no trouble returning to the wild.
Good luck with your baby :D
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Yay about the Blue Jay!
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