Baby Bird Out of the Nest: What to Do?

During the summer months, nestling and fledgling birds begin cropping up, and birders everywhere rejoice. It feels so special to spot a hidden fledgling, waiting for mom or dad to return with a tasty morsel. Often, a parent is nearby and may even be waiting for you to move along so it can safely feed its young. This time of a baby bird’s life is treacherous, as it hasn’t yet developed the ability to evade predators or the experience to even know what threats may be lurking about.
 
Recently on a neighborhood walk, we heard the begging calls of Violet-green Swallow babies and spotted these three nestlings, incessantly declaring their hunger to the world.

As we watched a feeding by the female parent, a loud chirping from somewhere even closer attracted our attention. We looked down and discovered a fourth youngster just feet from us – we had nearly stepped on it! Although out in the open, the young bird’s size and color made it difficult to see against the gray gravel.

 
Our delight in this close-up encounter quickly turned to worry. We knew that fledglings with parents nearby should be left alone – however, this little one was in immediate danger of getting squished by a car.
 
We determined we probably should move the young bird to a safer spot. If we weren’t already convinced, a car then rounded the corner – its tire headed directly toward the fledgling. We blocked the baby and the driver slowly navigated around it safely.

We gently scooped up the bird and placed it several feet away at the base of an ivy-covered slope. Assuming the parents would still be able to easily locate the baby by its begging calls, we nervously moved on, hoping the fledgling would remain out of harm’s way.

We checked in on our little fledgling friend two days later, a little wary of what we would find. Heartbreakingly, we located it dead on the side of the road. We wondered what had happened. Its body was intact, indicating it hadn’t been run over by a car. Perhaps the parents didn’t feed it enough or at all? We immediately second-guessed our decision to relocate the bird and otherwise leave it be. Did we do the right thing? Should we have instead taken it to Native Songbird Care & Conservation?
 
According to the National Audubon Society’s “What to Do With a Baby Bird,” if you find a young, feathered bird on the ground you should generally leave it alone. An exception to this guideline is to move the bird if it’s in immediate danger to “somewhere where the parents still have access to it,” which we did. In hindsight, perhaps we should have stuck around to make sure a parent was feeding it. However, since a parent was actively tending to the other young just 25 feet away, we assumed the adult surely heard the fourth baby calling. Although the result was the exact opposite of what we hoped for, in retrospect, we believe we acted reasonably. Yet, reaffirming this doesn’t help the painful feeling of knowing this little one didn’t survive.
 
We’re smack dab in the middle of nestling and fledgling season. Should you encounter a baby bird on its own, here’s a helpful flow chart from The Wildlife Center of Virginia on what to do.