Baby Bird Saved by Good Samaritan

by Tony Alexander
(Covington, GA)

I noticed a birds nest several weeks ago above my front porch. Last week, as I was going to clean up the bird droppings on my patio, I noticed that one of the babies was on the ground, huddled in a corner. I wasn't sure how she got there but she looked distressed and wasn't moving much. When I looked up, I could see 3 babies still in the nest, staring at me. I didn't know much about birds but I was told that if I touched the baby by hand, the mother might reject it. Since I didn't own a ladder tall enough to get her back in the nest, I decided to create a small nest in a plant hanger that I had. I then picked up the baby with a garden glove, and moved it into the nest I created and hung the nest about 10 feet below the original nest. My thinking was that the mother would notice her and still continue to feed her from there. About 2 hours later (about 8:30pm EST), a rain shower came through and the temperature began dropping after that. I then went back out to check on the baby about 9pm, after the rain stopped and it looked weaker than it was earlier, and my thoughts were that if I could get it back into the original nest, that would be its best chance of survival. I then called my neighbor across the street, who had a ladder tall enough to get up to the roof. We both hoisted the ladder up to the roof, I then picked up the baby with my garden glove and placed it back in the nest and hoped for the best. The next day when I looked up, I could see 4 heads sticking out of the nest and that's when I knew the baby had survived its demise. That made me feel good to know that I probably saved her life. But now I still don't know what type of birds these are, so can someone please tell me? Thanks.

Comment
Nice work, Tony! They are swallows. Their nests are made out of mud. Enjoy!
Susan