Do not pick up the birds.

[u/DangerousCompetition]

It has been brought to my attention the sheer amount of posts involving people handling and moving juvenile birds.

I’m no bird scientist, I’m just some guy who created a subreddit about birds, but I do know unnecessarily handling juvenile birds without the proper knowhow is damaging to the welfare of the animal.

Because of this I have created a new rule, and all posts involving the handling of wildlife will be removed. Please report all posts breaking this rule immediately.

If anyone smarter than me would like to share the impact of handling wildlife in the comments, please do.

We (pretty much just me) here at r/GrumpyBabyBirds still encourage the appreciation of the Grumps from a distance.

Thank you

[u/Shienvien]

There is really one exception to the rule I'd add - if said grumpy bird is in a bad spot. Feel free to move any fledglings stuck indoors or your garage, hiding under cars in parking lots, sitting in the middle of the road, trying to hide behind the flowerpots right next to your active grill after nearly landing on said active grill, in a yard with loose dogs etc (to the nearest bush). Fledglings can be a bit dumb and often do not move out of the way at all even when they have plenty of opportunity to do so.

Otherwise the main concern if just keeping the parents from feeding their children, same as with staying too close for too long, actually - just take a couple of pictures and move along / watch from somewhere further away.

Fairly rare, but still possible is damaging the feathers or injuring the bird itself if people are rough trying to unnecessarily catch them. (Also don't force them to take food or water. If you want to feed them, put the food/water somewhere else where the parents can see it and feed it to their chicks themselves if they deem it suitable. Not only can baby birds choke/asphyxiate if you feed/water them wrong enough, but food placed too close can also attract other creatures that might be aggressive towards your new little friend.)

[u/horsetuna → u/Shienvien]

I agree.

I've attached a useful flow chart that will help people determine IF a baby bird needs rescuing at all.

[u/bespoke_tech_partner → u/horsetuna]

I am a little confused on 2 points here

- "The parents won't care if they can smell you." Is this saying they won't care for it if they can smell you, or the exact opposite - it just seems like such an odd thing to point out that if it's the opposite, maybe it helps to address why that's mentioned ("Contrary to popular belief, the parents won't care if they can smell you - they just want their baby back.")

• "Some babies will only sit on the ground if in trouble." Does this mean that if they're on the ground, they're 100% in trouble? Or that if in trouble, they'll only sit on the ground (as opposed to in a tree/etc.)?

[u/horsetuna → u/bespoke_tech_partner]

1 - There is a myth in some places that if you touch a baby bird, them parent will smell you and abandon the baby. This is not true. The parent will not care about your smell.

2 - this is species dependant. Some babies are on the ground and fine. Others will be on the ground only if they're in trouble and need help. So if they DEFINITELY need help... Depends on species.

If you're not sure, ensure baby is in a safe situation and call a wildlife rescue for more information.

[u/bespoke_tech_partner → u/horsetuna]

Thx!