July 10, 2004
Bluebirds -- Day 6
Boy are they getting big! We snapped this photo an hour ago. As you can see, pinfeathers have appeared and they are sitting upright by leaning their necks and heads on the side of the nest. It seems to me that the nest would be a bit too crowded with more than 4 birds!
More photos of Day 6 birds:
http://www.hunt101.com/img/184188.jpg
http://www.hunt101.com/img/184189.jpg
This morning Paul and I attended a 2 hour session at Wildcare about birds. We learned a lot, although it was definitely one of those session where you leave knowing that you know hardly anything about the given subject. Not only has wildlife rehabilitation been a recent phenomenon (25-30 years) which means that the rate of research and discovery is quite rapid and contradictory, there are so many species of birds that it is nearly impossible for someone to gain a comprehensive understanding of these creatures. On top of that, there are currently very few published books and guides that aid in hatchling and nestling identification. So even if you know the conditions under which a bird needs to be cared for, it's hard to tell oftentimes what you're dealing with. The majority of baby birds that come into the center are of the "TBD" species.
The lack of information about what hatchlings (~0-4 days old), nestlings (~5-10 days old) and fledglings (~11 days old until they leave the nest) look like for each species combined with the fact that Wildcare gets most of the native species of birds presents an unique opportunity for an enterprising sort of individual. If someone would just take pictures of the birds every day during their development and publish such a photo book, one could do a lot of good for avian rehabbers out there and make a nice profit. This is definitely something that Paul and I are interested in doing. We're also interested in learning how to enhance the outdoor avian areas based on the needs and behavior of different species. Currently, there is a distinct lack of distinction in the avian cages. What needs to happen is the creation of a more realistic, naturalistic environment where fledglings and adults can (re)acclimate themselves to their preferred natural environments.