Day 2

[pirocks]

I saved a baby bird today. Okay, kind of. There was this bird that, according to my dad, fell out of the nest. He thought the bird had a broken leg, but it turned out that it was just a baby and it's legs were really too weak to stand on. So we picked it up, and but it in a basket, and tied the basket to a tree. And we saw the mother flying around

Comments

[secret_panda]

You probably shouldn't pick up baby birds. It freaks the parent birds out and then they refuse to take care of it, so the baby dies. If you must touch one, put on gloves.

Also, according to my birdbook Orchard Orioles aren't found in Colorado. It might have been a Bullock's Oriole.

Sorry to get all didactic on you!

[pirocks]

That's interesting. I was searching around online, and I read that that was a myth, but I feel like trusting you more than the internet.

But we have a Colorado bird book, and orchard orioles are definitely in it, so I'm pretty sure that's what it was. And the bird is still alive as of now!

[secret_panda]

Okay, cool (re the ID). Having never set foot in Colorado (I've taken the train across your state, but that's it), I wouldn't know. And it's true that birds don't smell (except vultures, and, um, hummingbirds, maybe? some other kind), but I was told by a ornithologist from Cornell that if the parent-bird sees you touching the baby, it will still freak out, and the oils from your hand damage the feathers/skin and transmit diseases (both ways - do you have West Nile out there?).

[yashabk]

Hmm I remember when I was a kid a friend and I "saved" a bird. It was lying on the pavement and we made sure nobody stepped on it or biked over it or drove over it and I guess eventually animal control showed up or something.