Sunday, July 19, 2009

Dove Success!



Looks like the nestling rescue was successful! The parent is back and sitting in the hanging basket with the baby doves. It took about an hour for the parent to feel safe enough to approach the basket, and it wasn't long before it was in the basket with the babies.

I used an old hanging basket I had around my stash of garden stuff, reattached the chains, and then put in a layer of Mesquite tree clippings from a recent pruning job. I laid the original nest, which was pretty damaged, on top of the clippings, and then popped the nestlings in. They didn't move--just stared at me. I think they were in shock! The parent stayed at a distance while I was hanging the basket, and after a while, perched near the basket, checking things out. The next time I looked, she/he was sitting in the basket.


The nestlings have been given another shot, and I sure feel good about my role in making this happen. And, thank goodness for Google! I had no idea about how to attempt to rescue baby birds, but now I know what to do for baby birds from birth to launching. This is the first time I've ever seen live nestlings on the ground. Mostly, I just find smashed bird eggs under the trees.

Check the previous post to see how this all started.

13 comments:

Julie said...

Oh, YEAH!!!!!!!!!! That was a very cool trick with the hanging basket! I will share this with my Mom because she found an injured bird once and it was rejected by all of the local wildlife people...so you must learn how to help them the best we can! Great job!!!!!

CanadianGardenJoy said...

Aiyana ... this was an amazing story and you had the pictures to go with it ! .. We have beautiful Morning Doves here too .. I don't care how common they are , I love them : ) .. This was similar to the garden center story I did .. I was so surprised to see the Robin's nest in the middle of such activity right there in a potted plant .. then the parents trying to teach the fledglings? how to fly and where to go.
A lot of times we see sad results of odd nesting .. but this was wonderful : ) Thank you !
Joy

Claude said...

well, nice to know it worked out... Usually I wouldn't get to the birds in time to save them, we have too many cats in the neighborhood. But that's nature...

Anonymous said...

Congratulations! What a cheery event!

Pudgeduck said...

I'm so happy they made it!!Good job!!!

beckie said...

Wahoo! Great job and such good info. Thanks for the update.

Sisah said...

That was quick! Congratulations for that successful operation, a really good idea to take an old hanging basket!
Viele Grüße
Sisah who has more time at the moment for commenting!

Kim said...

That's great news! Way to go.

Vireya said...

Well done! Amazing the internet can have someone on the other side of the world worrying about a couple of baby birds. But it can also spread the good news and bring a smile to the face. Hooray for that!

Unknown said...

Good for you, rescuing the doves! I love them and even though I know nature lets some things die, I'm so glad you were able to successfully get this family back together again.

Mary and Skip said...

Wow! This is awesome!

And something to remember...had a doozy of a "monsoon" storm out here in Chandler last night. My trees are still too new for birds to be nesting in them.

Jenn said...

What a fantastic story!

That is great.

verobirdie said...

How is the family doing? It is a nice story. I hope it will end well.