Tough day for Woody and family

[Jimx29]

So tonight i'm out cutting up the downed trees I got yesterday from a nasty storm rolling through, and as i'm going, I get to a rotted arm that was left on the tree after I lost half of that tree last year. I cut off about 24" or so, and after that log falls, I pick it up to throw it in the wheelbarrow to haul it to the road. As I pick it up, I look and it's pretty much completely hollowed out, with a nice 2"-3" hole on one side. I show it to my brother and he looks at it and then I toss it. Didn't think anything of it till after about 45 minutes of cutting, hauling all the branches out to the road, I return to the bulk of the tree to cut it up for firewood. I go and get ready to start cutting it down to size, when I look and see this:

http://img186.imagevenue.com/loc27/th_38200_P7092508_122_27lo.JPG (http://img186.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=38200_P7092508_122_27lo.JPG)

It's a red-bellied woodpecker baby chick. He blended in with my driveway so well cause I have a top coat of millings (ground up blacktop) and so it was kind of lucky That I saw him. Of course I run to go get my camera, and when I get back I lay right down on the ground to get a few macro shots, and as i get down there, I see there are 3 more still in the other half of the log/arm that I cut off earlier (3 males, 1 female) :o

http://img160.imagevenue.com/loc671/th_38207_P7092510_122_671lo.JPG (http://img160.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=38207_P7092510_122_671lo.JPG)
http://img179.imagevenue.com/loc353/th_38501_P7092516_122_353lo.JPG (http://img179.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=38501_P7092516_122_353lo.JPG)

Now as I got down there, I could see that the one laying out was just a little bit bloodied on one of his claws, but no where else. So here I sit.......no clue as to what top do with them. I finally decide to take them out and put them off to the side in my neighbors huge pine needle pile. After setting them there, The cut one didn't really move, but the other three kept hoping/flying a little bit....obviously trying to get away from the situation.

They were really giving me the 'ole stink eye when I got anywhere near them :P

http://img183.imagevenue.com/loc242/th_38502_P7092520_122_242lo.JPG (http://img183.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=38502_P7092520_122_242lo.JPG)

http://img124.imagevenue.com/loc1149/th_38899_P7092524_122_1149lo.JPG (http://img124.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=38899_P7092524_122_1149lo.JPG)

http://img102.imagevenue.com/loc1194/th_38965_P7092525_122_1194lo.JPG (http://img102.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=38965_P7092525_122_1194lo.JPG)

http://img124.imagevenue.com/loc695/th_38966_P7092526_122_695lo.JPG (http://img124.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=38966_P7092526_122_695lo.JPG)

So, after seeing how much they were not liking being out in the open, I decide to cut the other half of the nest/arm/log off, and then go and dig under 45 minutes of branches :| to retrieve the other half. I collect all four of them and one at a time put them back in.....not the easiest thing to do now that they were now starting to chirp/scream/whatever. Before this not a single one of them made a peep. Kinda funny how that worked.

http://img16.imagevenue.com/loc747/th_39514_P7092528_122_747lo.JPG (http://img16.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=39514_P7092528_122_747lo.JPG)

So anyway, I get them all in and then put that log way off to the side of the driveway under a row of pines, then I put the top half of the log back,......hopefully restoring their home good enough so that mama pecker can find them and they will survive. They only get about 8"-9" when full grown, and these were about 5"-6", so these were probably not far off from flying the coop anyway. At least that's what I hope after seeing how they almost could fly when they were trying to get away from me.

Here's what it looks like after reassembly:

http://img171.imagevenue.com/loc19/th_39520_P7092530_122_19lo.JPG (http://img171.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=39520_P7092530_122_19lo.JPG)


So anywhoooo....cross your fingers and hope mama finds them. I hear that there's really not much meat on them, and of course they taste like chicken too.
I'll take a peek in there after a couple days and see what's happening. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v24/numbnutz/smilies/smilie_crossfingers.gif


http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/5960/redbellywp.html

[GrnBay007]

The things we go through to protect babes! Nice story.

If you touched them mom won't take them back, will she?

[GrnBay007]

I can't say what our pet rabbit did to her babies after the kids touched one of the babies :cry: can't get the image out of my head either ick!!!

[oregonpackfan]

Cyberski,

Your care and concern is touching.

It is possible the mother has already abandoned the babies. Have you considered taking the chicks to a local Audubon Society? They know how to care for birds there. Many birds raised at the Audubon are eventually released to the wild once they have matured.

[Freak Out]

Cyberski,

Your care and concern is touching.

It is possible the mother has already abandoned the babies. Have you considered taking the chicks to a local Audubon Society? They know how to care for birds there. Many birds raised at the Audubon are eventually released to the wild once they have matured.

Good call Oregon. The Mama is probably done with them so if you want them to survive that is the best option now. Save the woodpeckers Ski!

[MJZiggy]

The things we go through to protect babes! Nice story.

If you touched them mom won't take them back, will she?

We had either a sparrow or a finch in our attic a few weeks ago and after getting it out and assuming mama would not have anything to do with it, we put it in a planter on our deck so that a "kid project" could be collecting worms for it. When left alone for a few minutes time, mama bird showed up in the planter, gave a very long, loud lecture (I never knew baby birds could actually look shamed) and the two flew off together. So I guess sometimes...

Cyberski, that's very sweet that you're taking care of these little guys. If you don't have an audubon close by, there's always animal control which admittedly doesn't have the "audubon" expertise, but will take them.

[Scott Campbell]

I hear Ron Mexico takes care of animals in peril.

[Harlan Huckleby]

4 young woodpeckers, red-bellied or pileated, plucked and halfed
4 c. water
3 carrots, halved
2 to 3 celery stalks, cut in thirds
1 sm. onion, quartered
1 bay leaf
2 pinches rosemary
2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 c. elbow macaroni, uncooked

Wash chicks thoroughly, removing any visible pieces of fat. In a dutch oven, bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Add carrots, celery, onion, bay leaf, and rosemary. Drop the peckers, piece by piece into this so as not to lower the boiling point. Cover pot, lower heat, and simmer for 1 hour. If you wish a fricassee with more liquid, cook the macaroni separately in 5 cups of chicken broth made from boiling the neck, liver, gizzard, and heart with a small onion, a celery stalk, salt and pepper. Yield: 2 to 3 servings.

[Joemailman]

Apparently Harlan is not a card-carrying member of the Audubon Society. And no, I don't want to know what society Harlan is a card-carrying member of. :smack:

[Harlan Huckleby]

hah, believe it or not, I AM an Audobon guy! My favorite hobby is wandering around the woods in pursuit of birdies. I can identify pretty much all Wisconsin birds by sound.

But I started out life badly. My brother and I got BB-guns for christmas, and we took it upon ourselves to do a little hunting - in the neighbor's bird feeder! (Lord, have mercy on my soul.) The angry neighbor came running out, grabbed my bro by the scruff of the neck, and quivered, "You shot my chicadee!"

Well, my brother had never heard that word "chicadee" before, thought it funny and started laughing uncontrolably.

Why do parents buy BB guns for little boys? ARe they nuts?

[Joemailman]

Your brother must have been a pretty respectable shot if he hit a chickadee. They're tiny. Most kids would shoot at crows or mourning doves.

[MadtownPacker]

That's a nice story Cy. Most of the other rednecks on this forum wouldn't have done that. :lol:

[mraynrand]

MMMMMmmmmmmm......woodpecker - My one weakness.

[Joemailman]

A different kind of woodpecker recipe:

http://www.drinkswap.com/drinks/detail.asp?recipe_id=7839

[Jimx29]

That's a nice story Cy. Most of the other rednecks on this forum wouldn't have done that. :lol:I prefer "Cracker" actually :D

[Little Whiskey]

actually, i was going to tell him how nice it was that he got those woodpeckers out for the coyotes to get. they won't have to dig them out of the tree now :lol:

i'm not a big bird fan....well at least not for the more common birds. robins black birds etc. I've had a few that think it is a great idea to fly into my windows. after i brought my new car home the jackasses were flying into the doorpanels and trying to stand on the hood. SOBs!!!

[packinpatland]

actually, i was going to tell him how nice it was that he got those woodpeckers out for the coyotes to get. they won't have to dig them out of the tree now :lol:

i'm not a big bird fan....well at least not for the more common birds. robins black birds etc. I've had a few that think it is a great idea to fly into my windows. after i brought my new car home the jackasses were flying into the doorpanels and trying to stand on the hood. SOBs!!!

What in world kind of car do you have???

[Jimx29]

Little update....
Yesterday I checked on them and gave them a night crawler to eat. Of course they didn't eat it right then, but now today I didn't see it in the nest. Also got a call back from our local autobahn lady, and she said that if this happened Monday eve, and it's now (was) wed. eve. and they are still active and chirping, that would mean that more than likely the mom has been there cause they would either be dead, or very close., and I now know today that they are very active....I opened it up to drop another worm in there, and one of the guys was hanging on inside the top half and as I opened it, and I tried to shake him out, he came out, but landed on the edge of the hole...sat there about a sec, then flew away :P It wasn't pretty flying at first, but he didn't crash. Ended up flying across the yard next door and up into a patch of trees.
I figure now tomorrow i'm gonna pull up a chair, open it up and just sit and watch :D

[MJZiggy]

How cool is that!!!!

[packinpatland]

Little update....
Yesterday I checked on them and gave them a night crawler to eat. Of course they didn't eat it right then, but now today I didn't see it in the nest. Also got a call back from our local autobahn lady, and she said that if this happened Monday eve, and it's now (was) wed. eve. and they are still active and chirping, that would mean that more than likely the mom has been there cause they would either be dead, or very close., and I now know today that they are very active....I opened it up to drop another worm in there, and one of the guys was hanging on inside the top half and as I opened it, and I tried to shake him out, he came out, but landed on the edge of the hole...sat there about a sec, then flew away :P It wasn't pretty flying at first, but he didn't crash. Ended up flying across the yard next door and up into a patch of trees.
I figure now tomorrow i'm gonna pull up a chair, open it up and just sit and watch :D

I figure now tomorrow i'm gonna pull up a chair, open it up and just sit and watch :D[/quote]

With a camera in hand I hope!!!

[Jimx29]

If you touched them mom won't take them back, will she?The lady at the audubon said that this is false. Most likely something your parents made up so you wouldn't end up messing around with every nest in the neighborhood :D





I figure now tomorrow i'm gonna pull up a chair, open it up and just sit and watch :D

With a camera in hand I hope!!!Of course :P I wish my camcorder wasn't ill. It's supposed to get back to me from the shop mid to end of next week.

[Little Whiskey]

I figure now tomorrow i'm gonna pull up a chair, open it up and just sit and watch :D

With a camera in hand I hope!!!

.... I was going to suggest a beer in hand.

speaking of watching wildlife. this morning i woke up and had two bucks in my backyard. a six and an eight, in velvet.

[MadtownPacker]

speaking of watching wildlife. this morning i woke up and had two bucks in my backyard. a six and an eight, in velvet.How long did it take you to run and git ole Betsy off the gunrack of the 1958 Ford truck? :D

[Little Whiskey]

How long did it take you to run and git ole Betsy off the gunrack of the 1958 Ford truck? :D

its a '62 thank you very much!!!

actually the only shooting i did was with my camera. i won't say the same if they come back in a few months.

[Jimx29]

Went out there last Friday to let the last 3 get out, and after I opened it I saw one had already gotten out, so I just left it opened and sat for a bit. It wasn't hardly 2 minutes later one guy peeks out and get on the rim, sees me and takes right off.....right into the pile of topsoil that I have :P There was a pretty flat side to the pile and he found it. I walked closer to him and he got up and this time hit open yard. The last female was the one I injured, so i ended up lifting her up and sat her on the edge of the log. She sat there for about 2 seconds and fly off just fine. So no more babysitting for me.:D


http://i12.tinypic.com/5y2bayp.jpg
Who the hell put that wall of dirt there??

[GrnBay007]

Went out there last Friday to let the last 3 get out, and after I opened it I saw one had already gotten out, so I just left it opened and sat for a bit. It wasn't hardly 2 minutes later one guy peeks out and get on the rim, sees me and takes right off.....right into the pile of topsoil that I have :P There was a pretty flat side to the pile and he found it. I walked closer to him and he got up and this time hit open yard. The last female was the one I injured, so i ended up lifting her up and sat her on the edge of the log. She sat there for about 2 seconds and fly off just fine. So no more babysitting for me.:D


http://i12.tinypic.com/5y2bayp.jpg
Who the hell put that wall of dirt there??

Kinda sad to see them go, huh?

[packinpatland]

Have you got a tad of the 'empty-nest' sydrome? :lol:

[oregonpackfan]

Have you got a tad of the 'empty-nest' sydrome? :lol:

Ooooooooooh! Great pun, PPL! :lol:

[Jimx29]

Have you got a tad of the 'empty-nest' sydrome? :lol:well, I do have 13 siblings to fall back on :?