Why do birds kick their young out of nests?

Question

I guess it's because the young birds are sick or something.

Answer 1

Birds do not usually "kick their young out of the nest." If they do, it is because they are sick or deformed, or the mother senses that something is very wrong and the baby will not survive on its own.

Most baby birds that you find on the ground, though, end up there for one of two reasons.

A nestling can fall out of the nest, or be knocked out, if the nest is too small, or if the wind blows really hard, like in a storm. If you find a nestling on the ground, you can put it back in the nest. The mother will not reject it. Birds do not have an acute sense of smell, so the mother bird will not detect your scent on the baby.

The other reason a baby bird ends up on the ground is because it is time for them to leave the nest. Baby birds fledge (leave the nest) BEFORE they can fly. They need some time on the ground, hopping around, climbing low branches and exercising their wings until they have strengthened them enough for flight. The parent birds continue to feed and care for the fledglings until they are self-sufficient.

If you find a baby bird on the ground that has most of its feathers, but still can not fly, leave it where it is. It is a fledgling, and the parents will take care of it. If it is in imminent danger from a cat or other predator, or if you see it in the middle of the street, simply place it in a low bush as close to where you found it as possible. The parents find the fledglings by sound, not sight, so you need to put it where the parents can hear it.

If you find a nestling on the ground, and you can not find the nest, or if you find an injured bird of any age, you should contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. You can find one here: http://www.tc.umn.edu/~devo0028/contact.htm

In the US, it is illegal to keep any native migratory bird unless you have the appropriate permits. Many other countries also have similar laws to protect their wildlife.

Please, under no circumstances, attempt to care for any wild bird yourself. There is so much more to rehabilitation than keeping the animal alive until you think it is ready to be released. You have to know not only what to feed the bird, but how (Please do not attempt to give a bird any liquid by dropper - baby birds can aspirate and die). You also have to know how to assess the birds general health and condition.

A baby bird kept in captivity must be taught to recognize and find the type of food it will eat in the wild. If it is being hand-fed, it may not associate the bugs and berries and seeds in nature as being food. It must also have the opportunity to exercise its wings a lot, so it will be able to fly on or shortly after release. When I volunteered at the Avian Rehabilitation Center, we kept the rehabilitating fledglings in a large walk-in cage with lots of shelves and branches leading from one shelf to the other, and down to the ground. We would place different types of food in the cage for them, as they were being weaned from the hand-feeding formula. We offered seed, meal worms and chopped up fruit. No fledgling was released until it was eating on its own, had sufficient weight gain, had all of its flight feathers in good condition, had no sign of diarreah or nasal discharge, had clear eyes, and could fly at least a few feet in a straight line.

These are the reasons to get the bird to a licensed rehabilitator - they have the training and the resources necessary to do all this, in addition to having the permits to do it all legally.

Answer 2

They generally don't. But in some species the young actually kick their siblings out of the nest. It's sad, but if there is a limited amount of food to go around, it's better to raise 2 out of 3 healthy chicks than to end up with all 3 starving.

Answer 3

Yes, if the bird is not adequately growing or shows signs of sickness, the mother will kick them out of the nest because they have no way of treating them and they could be contagious.

Answer 4

Immaturity is often the reason. Birds ought to be 2 years previous before they're allowed to reproduce. while you're breeding her to a brother, the chicks might have a deformity which you will not see yet she would be in a position to experience and he or she is killing them because of the fact of it. Please, take the nest out and enable them to chill out. Finches do not want a nest to sleep in, it basically promotes breeding.

Answer 5

on the contrary, normally the young are kicked out when
they are capable of fending for themselves -- the animal
kingdom is more intelligent than humanity.

Answer 6

Time to fly on your own! Let's go come on you can't be here forever! Come and learn how to find your food too!

Answer 7

They might not like their babies.

Answer 8

they're smarter than people :)~