My Baby Chipping Sparrow
by Christa
(Hilton, NY)
During my big 4th of July picnic, my brother noticed a baby bird that had fallen out of it's nest.
Being the animal lover that I am, I had to remedy the situation. The little bird had luck on it's side.
Everyone at the picnic had parked on the grass and he was laying about an inch from one of the tires.
We found the nest in the tree above him and put him back inside. The next day I went to check on him and he had fallen out again and the nest was on the ground next to him.
My mother knew he would not survive if we tried to care for him ourselves. I was heartbroken at the thought of him starving to death but there wasn't much else I could do.
I found a big pine tree branch and covered him up so he would be out of the sun and hidden.
As I was walking away, he started squawking and when I turned I saw the mother bird land on the branch and feed him!
Both parents have been feeding him and sleeping with him at night inside the pine branch.
I put a small fence around the pine branch so that no one would mistakenly step on him and it would keep our dog from hurting him.
Yesterday he emerged from the pine branch and is roosting on the fence flapping his wings and trying to fly.
I'm sure "Herbie" will be leaving me soon (they grow up so fast!) but it has been so exciting watching him and his parents over the last several days.
This story is proof that not all baby birds are abandoned or orphaned.
I'm not sure he would have survived without the shelter of the pine branch so I'm glad I was able to help out but I'm also glad I knew enough to leave him where his parents were able to find him.
Nature is amazing!
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