Welcome to the latest issue of the MLWC newsletter.
RELEASES - You see here a Swainson's Hawk, which is rare for our area, just before its release July 18 near Columbia airport. It had been found on the ground there five weeks earlier and had perhaps hit a wire while hunting. There were no broken bones, but this juvenile was unwilling to fly for the first few weeks of care. It needed to put on a little weight and demonstrate its flying ability and hunting skills before resuming life in the wild, and so it did!
RELEASES - Western Screech OwlsThe six you heard about in our last newsletter all finished maturing and became successful hunters. We had heard their baby sounds become adult calls over time as they conversed with the wild owls in the area. Most were released, near where they were found, in the first half of August by the people who found them. These people really enjoyed the experience of opening the boxes and releasing the owls at dusk. Way to go!
RELEASES- If it quacks like a Duck... it may be one of the eight we released at a volunteer's pond in Tuolumne. One duckling had been found in Twain Harte on June 2. Ducklings don't do well as singletons, so the baby got a stuffed animal and a mirror until we could find it some duck pals. The young one shown is clearly a fan of Sesame Street. We were able to get three buddies for it from Stanislaus Wildlife Care Center. They all simply needed to grow up. Before we could release this group, we got another baby duckling July 5, from East Sonora. It was too young to join the first group, so we got three more buddies, again, from SWCC. The second group was released September 5 at the same pond as the first group, so now all eight are together, paddling and dabbling at leisure.
RELEASES - Songbirds and more songbirds! We were blessed with quite a variety since our last newsletter, including three constantly moving Juncos, a tail-bobbing Phoebe, Grosbeaks with their enchanting calls, eight bossy Robins, seven manic Scrub Jays and seven talkative Steller's Jays, a Cowbird in its lacy-looking garb, dancing Towhees, and acrobatic Barn and Cliff Swallows. Each was a joy to raise, fun to see individual personalities develop, and to watch fly free.
RELEASES - The three Douglas Squirrelscovered in our last newsletter went free August 7 in Sugar Pine, near where they were found. We transported the squirrels, each in its own nest box, and hung the boxes in adjacent trees. The property owner puts out backup food, keeps an eye on them, and absolutely loves them. The photo of them draped over a bottle of ice water shows two of them in their favorite location during the worst of the heat wave, while they were in care.
RELEASES - Two stunning Barn Owls soared off at dusk in early September. One had been with us for eleven weeks and had come in as a fuzzy kid with a wing injury due to an encounter with a dog. The other joined us five weeks later. A worker at the Chinese Camp mill had been at his saw, felt something on his foot, and looked down to see the young owl biting at his boot. The owl was capable of flight but skinny. The owls moved from a medium sized indoor cage to a 50 foot flight cage as they grew and developed flight muscles. They learned to capture live prey without benefit of parents to teach them. Their release took place on a hill overlooking La Grange, where the first one originated. (The exposed machinery at the mill would have made for an unsafe release site.) So they flew off together to begin their lives in freedom, strong, healthy, and full of promise.
RELEASES -A lovely Red-Shouldered Hawk was found in the Shaws Flat area and released there three weeks later, on August 3. It was bone thin when it came in and had an eye injury, probably from being hit by a car. Though the scratches on the cornea were permanent, the hawk showed he could see well enough to avoid branches, find perches, and hunt successfully. He was of good weight by the time he was released, and seeing him fly up and away was marvelous.
A Restive Raven - On May 22 a man in Sonora saw a Raven in his yard who couldn't get over the fence, and thought it was missing a toe. Thinking to put it out of its misery, he shot it with a bee bee gun. Then he called us, saying, "It's not dead. What should I do now?" We asked him to put it in a box, and we took it into care. Please call us first before deciding wildlife in need can't be helped. The bird was only missing a toenail, and was just too young to fly well, but now it had been shot.
Dr. Henderson of Jamestown Veterinary took x-rays and found a bee bee in the leg but no fracture. We decided to leave the bee bee for the time being, because it could become encapsulated in the tissues and not be a problem. After two months in care, it still limped somewhat, but we were unsure surgery would help. The raven was moved to the 50 foot flight cage, and the leg broke the same day, July 20, right where the pellet was. The pellet was removed, and a pin put in the leg, by Dr. Tanya Jackson of Twain Harte Veterinary. About three weeks later the pin was removed and a splint applied, but the raven wouldn't put weight on the leg, nor will it now.
We keep increasing the size of his cage and offer ever more perching and climbing opportunities, trying to create an environment where he’s more likely to use the left leg and develop its strength.
A striking feature of this fascinating bird is his huge and very powerful beak, which he uses with such great precision, picking up one tiny piece of kibble or mealworm at a time, stripping the paneling off the door, or finding the bit of exposed skin on the director's arm during physical therapy, Ouch!
We've located two other juvenile ravens, one at Napa Valley Wildlife that was found starving, and one at Eastern Sierra Wildlife that is tame due to being raised by a member of the public. These ravens will spend the winter together here and we hope come spring, they will be ready to fly free.
We hope to provide interesting articles and fun features, a look into the world of the creatures around us and the efforts required to help them when needed. Your comments regarding what you like and what you might like to see in the future are welcome. This is for your interest and enjoyment.
One of the joys of Karen Melendy's life is caring for baby birds in her home until they are ready to move to an outdoor aviary to finish growing up before release. This has been her second year, and, "I absolutely love doing this." Her guests this year included Scrub Jays, seven Robins, a Cowbird, and a Grosbeak. They were all a treat to take care of, and, "Robins are absolutely wonderful little birds." Fortunately, her husband feeds the babies when she's unable to, as babies require very frequent feeding all day long.
Karen is doubly appreciated, as this year she has been a Mealworm Wrangler (see Wish List at the end of this newsletter.) She currently has six trays of mealworms in a bran-based medium. They're fairly low maintenance and are invaluable for feeding songbirds and other animals in care.
This is Karen's first experience with caring for wildlife; like many of us, she came to it later in life. She cares for the babies in one of her bathrooms, which she has decorated with all manner of bird art on the walls. Karen doesn't have her own aviary yet, so the birds go to another volunteer when they're ready for one. She hasn't been able to see many of the bird releases, though she has seen some videos of them, but that's all right. She just wants to know they're healthy and ready for a second chance at life.
Director’s Docket:
Another baby season is winding down. Songbird babies remain our biggest challenge. Home care is very demanding, feeding is required from dawn to dusk, and in the beginning, as often as every 20 minutes. We are finding fewer volunteers able to make that commitment. Next year we will have a songbird hospital where volunteers can come for 4 hours, one day each week, and feed baby birds. If this sounds like fun and you are available from May thru August, give us a call! With releases, and fewer intakes, we have time now to focus on caging to be better prepared next spring. We are building new songbird cages and construction on the all metal woodpecker cage will begin at the end of fire season. If you have some time and like working with your hands, give us a call! -Laura Murphy
If you haven't received an email version of this newsletter and would like to, please go to our website, www.mlwild.organd click on the Newsletter link, enter your name and email address, and click Subscribe!
Credits - Most of this newsletter was written by Helen Engledow and edited by her and Laura Murphy. Photos were provided by Helen Engledow (including the wonderful Swainson's Hawk photo,) Laura Murphy, and Jackie provided the post release Douglas Squirrel photo. Karen provided her photo, and the x-rays were from Dr. Tanya Jackson.
“Two sounds of autumn are unmistakable...the hurrying rustle of crisp leaves blown along the street...by a gusty wind, and the gabble of a flock of migrating geese.”
― Hal Borland
Wish List
Reliable Volunteers - in particular, baby songbird feeders - 4 hour shift weekly
- May thru August at MLWC in Tuolumne
Astroturf - long or short leaf
Rubbermaid shelf liner
Gift cards - Lowe's or OSH
- Gas Cards
old ice chests (we use these to transport donated frozen mice)
Mealworm Wranglers! We raise mealworms to feed some of the animals. We will train any Wrangler how to care for them. We will provide the plastic trays, the bran medium and carrots for food/moisture. Wranglers would maintain the colonies, sort when necessary, and keep the volunteers supplied with different sized mealworms. Interested?
Call 677-7249 for more information.
Currently in Care
Barn Owl
(2) Western Screech Owls
(3) Common Ravens
Western Scrub Jay
Steller's Jay
Western Gray Squirrel
