BABY SHOWER - DAY 6
It's Bird Day Thursday!
Corvid (Corvidae)
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)
Bandit the Blue Jay

A corvid is any of the stout-billed passerine birds in the Corvidae family. These include Crows, Ravens, and Jays, to name a few.

Corvids are known for their high intellect, often thought of as the smartest birds. They can solve problems with brilliant solutions and understand complicated situations. For example, Jays can remember the positions of hundreds of seeds they hide in the woods, and Crows are able to remember the facial features of a human. 

Pictured here is Bandit the Blue Jay, one of our Education Ambassadors, who was brought to us with a missing wing. Blue Jays are one of the most common birds in North America. They live in wooded areas, and have adapted to backyards and city environments.

Blue Jays are omnivores and feed on acorns, seeds, grain, fruits and other berries, peanuts, meat, small invertebrates, and bird food. Jays are very territorial birds, and they will chase others from a feeder for an easier meal.

The Blue Jay can be beneficial to other bird species, as it will scream if it sees a predator within its territory and smaller birds often recognize this call and hide themselves.
Swifts
Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica)
Chimney Swifts

Swifts are truly amazing birds!

Swifts are true aerial insectivores and are incapable of picking up things with their beaks like other species of birds. They also cannot perch horizontally, nor can they walk like most birds. Swifts not only eat while in flight they also sleep, bathe and mate in flight.

Pretty impressive, right?

Swifts also construct nests different than other birds. Small sticks are carefully chosen by the parents and then weaved together with much detail. Swifts then use their glue like saliva to keep the nest together and adhere the nest to the wall of a chimney.

Swifts are very unique and require very specialized care! Since they can only eat while in flight, they will never self-feed in captivity, which means we hand-feed them up until its time for release. They also perch vertically rather than horizontally. Every aspect of their rehab is specific to their personal needs, right down to providing them with a makeshift chimney.

We greatly admire Swifts and feel privileged to be one of the few wildlife centers in the Carolinas equipped to care for them.
Altricial or Precocial Birds: Whats the Difference?
Altricial Birds
Altricial birds remain in the nest and depend on their parents for food, heat, and protection. Altricial chicks are born with closed eyes, naked, patches of down feathers, and unable to move away from the nest. Altricial birds include passerine birds, hummingbirds, swallows, woodpeckers, among others.

Pictured Below are the same Red-Bellied Woodpeckers in different stages of development!
Red-Bellied Woodpeckers in Nest
Red-Bellied Woodpeckers
Moving Around
Precocial Birds
Precocial birds are born with open eyes, a well-developed down cover, and leave the nest within a day or two after hatching. Precocial chicks can walk, run, and swim after a few hours of hatching. They can find their food, but they are usually helped and protected by their parents. Precocial birds include ducks, shorebirds, killdeer, and quails, among others.

Pictured below are a Wood Duck and Killdeer
Wood Duck
Killdeer
Supplies for our Fine Feathered Friends!
Supplies for birds include LOTS of insects!

(Crickets, Meal Worms, and Wax Worms)

Other supplies include:
Paper Towels, Tissue, Heating Pads, Syringes, Fresh Fruits and Veggies, Mazuri Parrot Diet, Mazuri Insectivore, Tweezers, Capstar, Gift Cards to Wild Birds Unlimited and Tractor Supply Company (we make our own seed blends tailored towards different species in care), Bird Toys, Unflavored Pedialyte, Powdered Egg Whites, Calcium Carbonate and AVI-ERA Bird Vitamins, Untoasted Wheat Germ and Nektar Plus for our Hummingbird friends!

We admit a lot of Chimney Swifts and other aerial insectivores for care each year and boy do they love worms! During the busy season our weekly worm order is $1,500! That's $6,000 a month in just worms alone!

Can you help us keep their bellies full by purchasing some worms from our wish list?

Our feathered patients would be oh so grateful!

Items can be purchased from our AmazonSmile Charity Wishlist or locally!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
Our Baby Shower Event helps us purchase needed medical and rehabilitation supplies to care for thousands of amazing animals!

Won't you help us save these Beautiful Birds?

Your generosity helps save wildlife!

Send us a check or click the link below. All gifts are gratefully appreciated!

Please remember to note that your gift is for the Baby Shower!