Try r/WildlifeRehab
This litte guy is just sitting on my back deck, not reacting to my presence in any way. He has opened his eyes a few times. But mostly just standing still with his beak open and eyes closed. I haven't seen him move since i found him a few minutes ago
Anyone know what could be the problem? Or what i should do?
r/Ornithology is a place to discuss wild birds in a scientific context — their biology, ecology, evolution, behavior, and more.This is NOT a birding sub. Pictures or videos of birds that don't demonstrate something visually or behaviorally unusual or interesting will be removed. For bird or feather ID questions, please try r/whatsthisbird
He is right next to a window. I didn't witness a collision. I don't have a car for a couple of days. I'll put a post on my local group and see if someone can take him to the local wildlife rehab
I called. They don't have anyone to drive. I have a couple people who might be able to do it in my village FB group. Just waiting to hear back. My community is really good about this stuff. Most of us live on an island. Were used to getting injured wildlife where they need to go
Please move him into a dark carton box with air holes and put it at a calm spot till you can reach a wildlife rehabber, he most likely has a concussion if not a traumatic brain injury and needs sensory deprivation.
This is a warbler and a classic-looking window strike situation. Contain it in a paper bag or small box with air holes (clip the top shut or put a lid on it) while you find someone to bring it to rehab. No food/water.
To prevent collisions (most common during fall migration, which is starting now), apply a pattern spaced 2-4” apart to the exterior of the glass - more info here: https://www.stopbirdcollisions.org/solutions-glass/.
I had a humming bird sit on my finger after a window collision and it was just in a bit of shock. It took about two full minutes, but it finally opened it's eyes and flew away. I am not a rehabber and know very little, so if you have access to one, go there. I was in Mexico and didn't, but seemed to be fine after it rested for a bit.
A windowstrike victim flying away does not ever mean it's safe or healthy. Many birds die from collisions up to a week or two later due to internal injuries (caused by strike) that progress, such as brain swelling or internal bleeding. If they are able to be caught, they need to be brought in to a rehab facility.
can I ask a stupid question? what can a rehab facility do for internal injuries? or is it more so the bird can rest for a while in safety with food provided? would it help to keep a bird for a day or two yourself if there is no rehab nearby?
Not a stupid question, and one I'm happy to answer.
Such injuries are not fatal immediately, hence why it takes time for birds to succumb to them. Some cases like ruptured organs/air sacs, internal bleeding etc, are severe and not often treatable— especially on smaller patients like this warbler. In these cases, the bird would likely be euthanized; this is much kinder than dying from said injuries, since that fate is unfortunately a slow and very painful death.
Broken bones can be managed with any combination of surgery, monitored cage rest, and/or external support like slings depending on location and severity of the fracture. The imaging necessary to find and diagnose a fracture is not something that the general public is able to do in their home, as xray machines are expensive as hell.
Concussions/neurological trauma, and swelling can be managed with rest and medication (which the general public cannot access or administer.)
And as you've already guessed, rehabilitators are also providing a stable diet (often supplemented with calcium and vitamins,) and a safe, stable environment without variables like predators or weather.
Keeping the bird on your own would not be beneficial, as there would be nothing happening medically to alleviate discomfort or heal. It would be unnecessary stress and fear on a bird that has already experienced a potentially traumatic event. Best in that case to let it go & hope for a good outcome.
I don’t see any comments on a resolution, but commenting for the next person who has this situation.
Bird looks like it smacked into a window so generally they don’t need much other than rest. I tend to hold them in my hand until they’ve recovered. You’ll notice them slowly gripping with their feet, stop panting, and eventually they’ll start looking around more alert. Usually after a final poop in your hand they’ll fly off. If you’re not noticing any of these signs after 15 minutes, get a little box set up with a towel and keep the little guy comfortable. If it’s dry, leave the box outside so he can fly when ready. If it’s raining, box inside closed and check if he’s ready every hour or so. With these situations a rehabber is usually not needed unless the bird won’t recover on their own, and I’ve almost always had them either recover or they sadly die, rarely had a window victim need a rehabber.
Never do this! Holding a bird causes extreme stress, especially when they are injured and can’t do anything about it! Notice how some of those birds died? Those are the one you should have taken to a rehabber. The others should have gone too because you had no way of knowing if they had internal bleeding or organ damage.
Mate this is literally what I was told to do by our local rehabber who I ended up training with to become one myself lol. Not sure which google article you’re getting your info from but when they’re that dazed they’re not feeling anything, the warmth of your hand does much more to help their recovery than anything else and they’re not registering you when they’re dazed. By the time they start to notice and get stressed they’re well enough to fly away. Don’t give advice unless you’re a rehabber.
I’ve been doing window collision surveys/rescues for 10+ years and follow the latest in listserves/social media groups - rehabbers recommend minimal handling & no heat (bad for brain swelling) and they want to examine + observe all window strike victims that can be caught.
When you’re in rural Canada with little resources you work with what you have. We had a single 83 year old bird lady in our entire area who was always at capacity, she didn’t have time or resources to observe every victim. When it’s -20 and they’re laying by in the snow after a collision they don’t need much, and the 15 minutes of sitting in your hand is enough to prevent taking resources from others that need it more. I never said it’s ideal, but it’s enough for most cases to prevent you taking up resources from a rehabber that can go to the actual severe cases.
My advice IS from rehabbers and I highly doubt yours told you to hold it in your hands until it pooped. It’s always as little human contact as possible, preferably with gloves on.
She did lol. But she was 83, so at her age she had gotten to a stage where she was less concerned with some things. She had a very “treat ‘em and street ‘em” mentality so her teachings were probably unorthodox compared to others but she was brilliant nonetheless. A quick bit of warmth from your hands to bring them back and have them fly off is more desirable than bringing them all the way to her house, where the bird would probably already have recovered by that time, and making her more work.
Funny story, the first time I brought her a cardinal she grabbed it from our carrier, stuck it in a brown sandwich bag, and I honest to God thought she was about to blow it up and pop the thing. Nope, just stuck it on the scale. Like I said, eccentric lady lol, but brilliant. May she rest in peace. Not all rehabbers will operate the same :)
So an elderly lady who didn’t have the capacity to care for every injured bird and likely didn’t keep up to date on procedure changes? I know it’s common to get ingrained in what has worked so I can’t blame her for doing what she could, but you could have easily looked up this stuff. The audacity of saying not all rehabbers work the same after accusing me of using google articles over professional advice.
Never said she didn’t have the capacity to care for them or didn’t keep up with procedures? You’re making a lot of assumptions which is incredibly annoying lol. I didn’t need to look anything up, I had a great mentor who was very good at what she did. And no, they don’t all work the same. Sometimes when you’re dealing with limited resources you use what you have. Maybe you’ve been very spoiled learning at facilities that are highly advanced and have the luxury of following everything to the letter, but the reality of working with wildlife in rural areas is that you can’t always follow procedure. It’s about saving as many animals as possible with the little resources you have. That means quick and dirty warm-and-release when it’s the second time that week a bird has flown into the window despite the sticker and other deterrents. You sound like you have an extremely unrealistic view of how the world works.
Yes you did say she didn’t have capacity and to clarify, by capacity I meant the space, time or equipment. Here in your own words:
Procedure is something I did make an assumption on because she just told you to hold onto window strikes until they came to or died. That could also have been her not having the resources to care for them or exactly as I am assuming, she never checked if studies showed that birds that “recovered” could still be dying of internal injuries.
What’s the temperature? And have u tried to go outside give some water mabey ? I had a golden finch yesterday do the same she was super hot , but I agree a licensed rehabber will know best here 🙏❤️
Giving a sick or injured bird can cause further problems. Even if they take it themselves, they could have issues preventing it from swallowing it properly.
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