- Baby bird found: Assess condition
- Baby bird fell out of nest: Reset?
- Should you feed and raise a baby bird?
Help the development of the site, sharing the article with friends!
When you find a little bird that has fallen out of the nest, the question arises how you can help it. Should you feed and raise the baby bird or put it back in the nest? We explain the best way to handle the baby bird.
If you find a fledgling outside the nest, use caution. Because the little ones often leave their breeding grounds before they look like "complete" birds to us and make a helpless impression, although they are well cared for and do not need any help. In this case, hasty action can do more harm than good and, in the worst case, scare away the bird parents. Here you can find out how to correctly assess such a situation and what you can do to help the baby bird.
Baby bird found: Assess condition
If you spot a fledgling outside the nest, first observe it closely and then use the following question to choose your next steps:
Is the bird fully feathered?
- Yes: It is a fledgling that left the nest on its own. His parents are probably around and taking care of him. Only intervene if the bird is injured or in imminent danger from cats or other predators. In the latter case, you can carefully pick up the young bird and place it on a tree or in a dense hedge nearby, for example.
- No: The bird is a nestling that probably fell out of the nest. He needs help.
Tip: For detailed information on what to do when you find an injured bird, see our featured article.
Baby bird fell out of nest: Reset?
If you have indeed found an unfeathered nestling, you should first try to locate the nest. If you are successful, gently pick up the baby bird and place it back in the nest. The bird parents accept the young again despite being touched and are not bothered by the human smell. However, wearing gloves canfor their own safety, as like any wild animal, the young birds could be infected with diseases or parasites.
If you cannot find or reach the nest, the baby bird needs professional help. Place it gently in a basket or box with air holes and line it with a soft towel. Do not offer food or water as the young birds are usually unable to eat and drink on their own and there is a risk of choking or drowning. You can also use our practical tree diagram for quick orientation if you find a bird:
Should you feed and raise a baby bird?
No - in principle, as a layman, you should never try to raise a young bird by hand or to feed a baby bird, because depending on the bird species, the animals have different requirements for food and care. The rearing of young birds can sometimes become very complex and usually goes awry if the necessary experience is lacking.
If you find an obviously helpless or injured baby bird, you should instead contact a veterinarian, a bird sanctuary or another suitable care facility, such as one of the NABU wild bird care stations.
Note: If you cannot find a suitable foster home, you can also report the birds you have found on Facebook in the "Wildvogelhilfe-Emergencies" group. There, veterinarians with bird knowledge or nursing stations in your area will usually be named within a short time.
Finding a young bird does not always mean a problem. In many cases, however, you are lucky to have young wild birds in your garden. During the breeding season, there are many exciting observation opportunities - from laying eggs to feeding and the young animals' first attempts to fly. And even if you shouldn't raise or feed small young birds yourself, you can support the hard-working parents with a feeding station in the garden, who of course also need food and a lot of energy during the breeding season. With our Plantura all-season feed, for example, you can provide a large number of garden birds with species-appropriate and nutrient-rich ingredients and an extra load of feed lime.
You can find out which garden birds you can observe here in winter, which ones head south in late spring and when the wild birds will return to us in ourSpecial article on migratory birds.