Wilson’s Warbler saved from jaws of death- Aug 8th
A neighbor frantically called today saying that she had just rescued a cute little baby bird from the paws of her cat! She said that it was still breathing, and would I look at it?
Fearing the worst, I took it from her hands, and was immediately heartened by its response to my examination: No broken bones, no obvious wounds—just a lot of shock.I offered it some sugar water (from my hummingbird feeder) put it in one of the warming boxes I use during winter bird banding, and placed the semi-opened box up on a glass tabletop, where a cat wasn’t likely to find it. JOY-- IT LIVED!
The juvenile male Wilson’s Warbler eventually flew away . March thru early August, bird nesting is active here in Shoreline, WA. Ground nests are very vulnerable to cats, and dogs (and yes coyotes, and raccoons).
June through early September is the time that unwary young birds are on the ground learning to survive. Many don’t make it. This four-inch Wilson’s Warbler was lucky because the neighbor’s cat had been playing bird hockey, not annihilation. Cats hunt instinctively, whether hungry or not. “Exact numbers are unknown, but scientists estimate that nationwide, cats kill hundreds of millions of birds…each year.” “There are more than 77 million pet cats in the United States. A 1997 nationwide poll showed that only 35% are kept exclusively indoors, leaving the majority of owned cats free to kill birds and other wildlife at least some of the time.” (http://www.abcbirds.org/abcprograms/policy/cats/materials/predation.pdf). I have two cats. One insisted that it wanted outside; I built an outdoor run that it can access through a cat door, anytime it pleases. It’s happy, and I am happy that it can’t get injured by another cat, dog, coyote, or car. Please help keep bird populations viable! Plant native vegetation, keep trees, if they must be cut, make into snags, don’t use pesticides (all birds eat lots of bugs) and keep your cats and dogs from hunting wild birds. Don’t let a “Silent Spring” happen here. Christine Southwick
Briarcrest neighborhood wildlife reporter.