Directions... Note the important observations below
for the bird you found
Hatchling/
Nestling
Any answer in a red box
means the bird must be seen by a rehabilitation
expert.
Yes
No
Is it cold?
It should feel very warm in your hand. Hatchlings cannot
maintain their own body heat - they need an outside
heat source. (Wrapping in a blanket won't work - that's
insulation. That will trap the heat that's there but
does not produce more heat.) Nestlings gradually gain
control of their body temperature as the feathers develop.
When fully feathered, they do not need a parent (or
other heat source) to keep them warm.
Yes
No
Is the skin on the
abdomen wrinkled and leathery? Wrinkled skin
indicates dehydration.
Yes
No
Is the skin soft
and smooth?
Yes
No
Can it hold up its
head and open its mouth? If not it is weak from
cold, dehydration and/or lack of food.
Yes
No
*Is it injured?
Do you see blood, scratches, bruised abdomen or a wing
or leg that dangles?
Yes
No
Are there flies
around it? Fly eggs on it? Fly eggs look like
fine grains of rice that hatch into maggots, which are
very small and worm-like.
Yes
No
Can you find the
nest from which it came? Are there others like
it in the nest? If siblings are present, the nestling
must go back with them. Can you safely reach the nest?
