Feeding Time For Small Birds

They are cute, they are funny and they are just like human offspring. 

These stunning photographs show the lives of warbler chicks and their relationships with their mother, but while they may be birds, they have striking resemblance to our own children. 

All day long they sit around, tweeting, waiting for mum who is on a constant battle to keep them stocked up with food. 

 

Feeding Time For Small Birds 

Grumpy: These three chickens look unhappy that they've had to wait so long for food, unaware that their mum is just behind them with a treat 
 


Hungry: These chicks look shocked that their mother has returned without food 

 

Open wide: A grasshopper is brought to this waiting chick 


 

Incey wincey: The chicks will make easy work of this spider 

The demanding warbler chicks can't fly yet so they perch precariously on tree branches waiting for their mum to bring delicious grubs and grasshoppers and there's much excitement when they arrive. 

The images display the incredible lengths the mother birds will go to in order to feed their hungry brood who are just days old.

The pictures, captured by photographer Octavianus Darmawan in Jakarta, Indonesia, show their incredible skill as they hover with the tasty treat and feed them in mid air. 

The 56-year-old said when he takes the pictures he can take anything from a few days to week to capture the perfect shot of the mother and her chicks together. 

He said: 'I take pictures to showcase the beauty of nature around me. 

 

Perched: This caterpillar's days are numbered as this chick prepares for its next meal 

 

Tweet me: They may be hungry but these young warblers expect mum to come to them with food 


 

Birdsong: A chorus emits from these youngsters competing for this delicious treat 


 



Fast food: The birds stand precariously on the thin branch as their mother comes and goes at great speed 

'I'm always impressed when I see the mother birds feeding their chicks because I can see how difficult it can be to find food and raise their kids. 

'They have to face dangers like snakes and cats and it can be a struggle but they work hard. 

'I became appreciative of my own parents after watching these birds and it made me thankful for the struggle they'd gone through to teach me and raise me well.' 


 


Under pressure: A long-suffering mother passes a grub up to her chick who looks big enough to go and get its own food 


 



Pick me! Pick me! The two on the right compete for food while the chick on the left looks like its been elbowed out 


 

Midnight feast: There's no rest for this warbler parent as she continues foraging and feeding late into the night 

 

Category ›

How to Administer Medicine to a Bird

Medicine may be in the form of a medicated seed, powder, liquid, ointment, drops or injection. How themedicine is given and in what form depends on such factors as its type and palatability, the condition and temperament of the bird, and the owner’s temperament. Administering medication in the feed is inefficient but is easier for chose owners who do not wish to handle the bird.Administering Medicated Seed

• Medicated seeds are available commercially. The success of medicated seeds depends on the condition of the bird. Seriously injured or sick birds usually do no teat or eat very little. Also, this type of medicine is only suitable for grain-eating birds, such as budgerigars, canaries and cockatoos.

Powders and Liquids in the Feed

• This is not a good method, because the amount of medication taken by the laird is in proportion to the amount of food consumed, which. Are usually determinedly the medication’s palatability and the nature of the bird’s injury or illness? In effect, the bird may be overdosed or under dosed.
• The powder can be made to stick to the seed lay coating the seed with vegetable oil before adding the medicated powder.
• If the medicine is in liquid form, the seed can he soaked in the liquid overnight so that it is well impregnated before feeding the bird.

Powders and Liquids in the Drinking Water

• The bird may be overdosed or under dosed according to the amount of water consumed. When using this method, make sure the bird is drinking the medicated water. The palatability of the water can be improved by adding glucose or honey.

Liquids by Eye Dropper of Syringe

• This form of administration requires you to be able to catch and restrain the bird.
• Hold the bird from behind, with the head between your thumb and index finger and the palm of your hand and remaining fingers enclosing the body, wings and legs.
• Turn your hand over so that the bird’s head is tilted slightly backwards. This position will allow liquid from the eye dropper to run towards the back of the throat rather than towards the open mouth (beak).
• Hold the eye dropper or syringe in the other hand, and move the tip of it towards the bird’s beak; the bird will automatically open the mouth to bite the tip.
• Quickly dribble the liquid, a drop at a time, into the mouth. If the bird does not swallow, tilt the head back little more and dribble more liquid into the mouth. If you tilt the bird back too far and administer the liquid too quickly, the medicine may flow into the windpipe, causing the bird to splutter.

Crop Feeding

• This is an efficient, professional method of administering liquid medication using a plastic tube oar metal crop needle attached to a syringe. Crop feeding should be left to your veterinarian or trained personnel, who have the required special knowledge and skill.

Administration by Injection

• This is a route often taken by veterinarians. Injecting medication is quick, efficient and convenient and should be left to your veterinarian or trained personnel.

Administering Drops and Ointments

• Eye drops. With the bird’s head held between your thumb and index finger, tilt the head tithe side so that the eye you are treating is uppermost. Holding the bottle of eye drops in your other hand, put one drop directly onto the eyeball. Keep the bird’s head tilted to the side for 20 seconds to prevent the eye drops rolling out and being wasted.
• Eye ointment. Many eye ointments are manufactured to be solid at room temperature and to melt at body temperature. In applying these ointments, use the same technique as for administering eye drops. Avoid using excess ointment to prevent contaminating the feathers around the eye, which may lead to excessive preening and self-mutilation.

Category ›

Kiwi

Introduction

The Kiwi Bird doesn’t fly and that is one distinction from it and other types of birds. They are about the size of a chicken. There are 5 species of them that have been recognized. They range in size based on location and species but they are about 18 inches tall and weigh about 7 pounds. This particular bird doesn’t have a tail either.

Description



They are the only bird species that have nostrils at the end of their long beak. They have a beak that is about 1/3 the length of their body. It is extremely sensitive to touch. They have wings but they don’t have any muscle which is why they don’t fly. The wings blend in so well to their feathers that you have to look closely to see that they have them.
They have a roundish body like a chicken. They have claw like feet that are very sharp and they use them for protection when necessary. They also use them to dig for food.

Distribution

The Southern Alps are the main location for the Kiwi Bird. New Zealand is where about 20,000 of them live. They like dark forests areas, they are able to adapt to a variety of locations. As their natural habitat has been removed they have been forced to live in areas that weren’t common to them before. Breeding programs at the the zoos have helped to increase their overall population.

Behavior 

This is a very shy bird and they tend to move quickly when they feel that there could be a predator around their habitat. They are also nocturnal and that helps them to stay away from various types of predators. They are very vocal and that helps them to protect territory, warn of dangers, and call to their mate.

Feeding

They consume a variety of foods including small invertebrates, grubs, seeds, and various types of worms. They will consume fruit when it is in season and various types of amphibians. They are able to locate insects and worms under the ground without having to see them due to their great sense of smell.

Reproduction


The males and females have dance rituals from March to June when they will take part in mating. They are very particular about who they choose for a mate because they will stay loyal to that same partner for life. If one of them dies there could be another mate in the future..
This particular bird lays the largest size of egg in proportion to their body size of any birds. Only 1 egg is placed into the nest that both the male and the female will create. The female will spend most of the time incubating the egg while the male looks for food to bring back to her.
They young will arrive in about 63 to 92 days. The parents will take turns protecting it and bringing food back to the nest. In a few weeks the bird will be able to leave the nest with them. They can live up to 20 years in the wild.


Conservation

All 5 of the Kiwi Bird species are at risk of extinction due to increased numbers of predators and loss of habitat. They are preserved in many National Parks and forests but there is still more work that has to be done in order to protect them.



kiwi bird facts
kiwi bird information
kiwi bird egg

Category › kiwi , kiwi bird , kiwi classification , kiwi facts , kiwi information , kiwi life span , kiwi of new zealand , kiwi photos , kiwi pictures , kiwi reproduction

Photo Share: Baltimore Oriole and Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Our Michigan Baltimore Orioles are now probably sunning themselves in the Southern U.S. or as far south as in southern Mexico and Central America until March.

Rose-breasted Grosbeaks migrate south in late September or in October, and return in late April or early May. Right now they should be wintering in central-southern Mexico through Central America and the Caribbean to Peru and Venezuela. The southern limit of its wintering range is not well known.

Thank you for sharing your photos! Holly sent us lots of fabulous photos that I will continue to share in the coming weeks on our Friday photo share. If anyone else would like to share a photograph of nature send it to bloubird@gmail.com and I'll put it on the Friday Photo posts.  

Category › Friday Photo

Rest of October

10-27 October

October is always a busy month at the banding station and this month was no exception. We've banded more birds so far this fall than any other year. By the 10th Yellow-rump Warbler numbers exploded as usual at this time of year and we continued to band many of them until their numbers waned on the 26th. We banded another Gray-cheeked Thrush on the 10th, this one being much lighter in color than the one on the 6th.

 

We also captured another HY Black-throated Green Warbler.

On the 12th we had many birds of 25 species, one of our best days for diversity. We were surprised to find Cedar Waxwings still in full juvenal plumage.

 

It was our first day of Marsh Wrens for the fall caught in the same net, one being exceedingly smaller than the other one.

 

The plumage coloration on the back is quite stunning.

 

We finally banded a Winter Wren after two escaped right out of our hands. Wrens are certainly wiggly creatures!

 

 While we've handled numerous Golden-crowned Kinglets this fall, our first Ruby-crowned Kinglet didn't show until the 13th, a young male.

 

He had spongy material wrapped around his legs, I've shown this before on other birds, and it turns out to be spider webbing. I was able to clip the webbing easily off his legs. 

 

On the 16th I joined James Junda, who runs the South Monomoy Banding Station, and his crew to band Saltmarsh Sparrows on North Monomoy. We arrived near high tide. Those working for the refuge had never seen it so high.

 

We scoured the area to determine the best place to set up nets.

 

Here James is ageing one of the sparrows captured. 

 

Saltmarsh Sparrows have perfect coloring to fit into the salt marsh, the bird below happens to have some leucism (some of the feathers lack melanin and appear whitish).  

 

These sparrows have very pointed tails. This HY bird is showing off his juvenal tail feathers, they are almost translucent. You can see why this species used to be called Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow.

 

Most of the young European Starlings have now molted into their formative plumage and look more like adults in basic plumage such as this one captured on the 17th.

This bird had a few retained juvenal feathers along with juvenal central rects which have an indistinct edging.

 

He was sexed as a male due to the brown iris. 

 

At this time the majority of HY Carolina Wrens

have gone through an incomplete molt as seen in the photo below. The blue arrow points to the pointed, abraded primary coverts and a molt limit is seen between primaries p2 with its light brown shaft and indistinct barring and p3-p9 with dark brown shafts and distinct barring. Clicking on the photo will make it easier to see.

 

Compare that to an adult wing below with rounded primary coverts (blue arrow) and distinctly barred primary and secondary flight feathers.

 

We captured our first of the fall Eastern White-crowned Sparrow on the 17th. The plumage coloration easily identifies it as a first year bird.

 

This bird had molted all of its greater coverts with a molt limit at the alula covert. 

 

Luckily we had a large group helping on the 21st, our biggest day, with 251 birds handled, 177 of those were yellow-rumps and one late Ovenbird. Another Lincoln Sparrow was banded on the 23rd

 

along with a very late HY female Wilson's Warbler,  

 

their fall presence in Mass usually ends the last week in September.  

 

Red-breasted Nuthatches are heard all over the island but we don't capture that many compared to how many I hear! This HY female is showing off her new body feathers and older retained flight feathers. 

 

The following day, the 24th, our first Sharp-shinned Hawk was captured, a HY female. First year birds can be identified by the vertical breast streaks and yellow eye. Her long wing identified her as female.

 

House Finches have also finished molting now making it easier to sex males with their reddish plumage on the face, breast and rump.

 

These finches can be told apart from Purple Finches by the streaking on the undertail coverts. 

 

We banded 4 White-throated Sparrows on the 27th and were able to compare a bird with bright morph plumage (right) and one with dull morph plumage (left). It is said that a bright morph will only mate with a dull morph and not with another bright morph (and visa versa).

 

Thanks very much to all who helped during the past three weeks- Gretchen Putonen, Keegan Tranquillo and his girlfriend Stephanie, Carolyn Kennedy, Judy Keller, Alice and Jimmy Wynn, Ben Lagasse, James Junda, Judith Bruce, and Jessica Rempel. The following is a list of birds seen, heard, or banded during this time period.

 

Total birds: 1056                                      Total species: 72

Total species of banded birds: 41             Birds/100 net-hours: 136

 

Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Brant
Canada Goose
Turkey Vulture
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk	1 new
Cooper's Hawk
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Merlin
Killdeer
Greater Yellowlegs
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker	2 recaps
Hairy Woodpecker
Yellow-shafted Flicker
Eastern Phoebe	1 new
Tree Swallow
Blue Jay	2 new
American Crow
Fish Crow
Black-capped Chickadee	15 new; 49 recaps; 1 unbanded
Tufted Titmouse	16 new; 4 recaps; 1 unbanded
Red-breasted Nuthatch	9 new; 1 recap
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper	2 new; 2 recaps
Carolina Wren	1 new; 6 recaps
Winter Wren	1 new; 1 unbanded
Marsh Wren	2 new
Golden-crowned Kinglet	15 new
Ruby-crowned Kinglet	2 new; 1 recap
Eastern Bluebird
Gray-cheeked Thrush	1 new
Hermit Thrush	5 new; 3 recaps
American Robin	22 new; 1 recap; 3 unbanded
Gray Catbird	22 new; 9 recaps
Brown Thrasher
Cedar Waxwing	2 new
European Starling	1 new
Red-eyed Vireo	8 new; 5 recaps
Nashville Warbler	1 new
Cape May Warbler	1 new
Myrtle (Yellow-rumped) Warbler	851 new; 126 recaps; 22 unbanded
Black-throated Green Warbler	1 new
Pine Warbler
Western Palm Warbler	5 new
Yellow Palm Warbler	9 new; 1 recap
Blackpoll Warbler	15 new; 2 recaps
Ovenbird	1 new
Common Yellowthroat	6 new; 1 recap
Wilson's Warbler	1 new
Yellow-breasted Chat	1 new; 2 recaps
Northern Cardinal	38 new; 7 recaps; 2 unbanded
Eastern Towhee	1 new
Song Sparrow	56 new; 49 recaps; 1 new
Lincoln's Sparrow	1 new
Swamp Sparrow	34 new; 6 recaps; 1 unbanded
White-throated Sparrow	4 new; 4 recaps
Eastern White-crowned Sparrow	1 new
Dark-eyed Junco	3 new
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
House Finch	2 new
American Goldfinch	32 new; 1 unbanded
House Sparrow

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Category ›