Whoa!

Zoey the Towhee has a new pal. After a lot of rhyming, Dan thought we should name the new bird Joey, but within a blink of an eye, the word "Whoa" came out of his mouth. Being huge fans of the show Blossom and Joey Lawrence, "Whoa" seemed perfect. Whoa is on the left with the silly down feathers on her head. She was also cornered by a cat. These are the first 2 baby songbirds of Ventura and Santa Barbara.

Whoa realy likes to eat worms covered with Calcium powder. Yumm.

This is Zoey getting fed baby bird food via a syringe.

And after the feeding, Zoey is content. Check out her huge crop.

David and Herman sitting in a tree...

...K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First came love, then came marriage, them came Hervid and Davman in a baby carriage.

Herman's new pals

Herman is no longer an only child. He had to learn the word "share" this week. A stork brought us 2 baby Anna's hummingbirds and a baby California Towhee.

The 2 Anna's Hummingbirds both arrived at the Wildlife Center after being rescued from the UCSB campus in the pouring rain. Since they are already fluttering their wings and hovering, they are much noiser and are always looking for an escape route. I nicknamed them "The Troublemakers".


The California Towhee showed up in the mouth of Wookie, who is the sister of my cat Yoda. The Towhee has a few scratches and an inflated air sac, which all seem to be healing with the help of antibiotics. This bird is loud. It chirps all day long. Non-stop. Not a cute chirp either. Once Dan gets back from Fresno, I will have him post the chirp so you can enjoy it too. I named the bird Zoey the Towhee... not because it rhymes and is another creative name courtesy of me, but because of my brother David. When I told him that there was a bird that attacks Dan's VW Bus mirror every morning, and I explained that it was a towhee, he thought I called I called it Zoey.

And for Herman, he is much bigger now. His feathers are growing, he's gaining coloration, cleaning his beak on the perch alot and moved up to a laundry basket. He did a 180 a few days ago and got a standing ovation. His mama was proud.

Good job Herman!

Herman is growing up so quickly. He changes every day.

On Sunday, I placed him in the sun and he started preening himself. As you can see, he is looking very handsome. His wings are filling in but he still has a mohawk of down feathers running down his back.

He also discovered the shish-kabob sticks in his new enclosure. He is still a little wobbly while preening on the sticks, but he will become pro at no time at all.

A few minutes after perching for the first time, he also discovered the syringe full of nectar and took a sip. The tip of the syringe is painted red to help attract him to it.

David and Carrie came over that evening to watch the Sopranos and to meet Herman. They both said he was so small and sweet that they wanted to cry. That pretty much sums it up.

Herman the Hummingbird

This is Herman and this is his story.

The baby hummingbird pictured here was brought to us from the Los Angeles Zoo. Yes, the zoo. After trimming the trees in the Rhinocerous enclosure, the gardeners noticed a nest on the ground with this little guy clinging on for dear life. The nest must of been knocked down or cut down on accident.

Female hummingbirds build cup-shaped nests out of downy materials, bound together with spider webs. There are usually 2 babies per nest, born mostly naked and completely dependent on their mother. The male and female parents do not form pairs as do other species, most likely because they are highly territorial.

Since this baby has down and some feathers coming in, it is considered a nestling. (The naked in the nest phase is called hatchling and the able to fly but not yet independent phase is called fledgling.)

Baby hummingbirds can NOT survive off of the sugar formaula you put out in your backyard feeder. They need a speical protein nectar formula. At this age (about 2.5 weeks old) , they are fed about 0.3-0.5cc of formula every 40 minutes from 6am to 9pm. It's a big commitment but that's the life of a wildlife rehabber.

So, you are probably wondering why I decided on Herman. Herman is actually the name of the oldest Rhino in North America that lived at the LA Zoo. He was 36 years old, weighed 4500 lbs and was one of the original animals brought to the zoo in 1966.


Click on this link to listen to another rehabber's story of raising baby hummingbirds.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4575898

Proud to be an American Kestrel

I would like for you to meet Bob and Juliet.

They are American Kestrels (Falco sparverius), the smallest diurnal raptor in North America. The American Kestrel was formerly called a "sparrow hawk."

Which one is Bob?
Bob is the smaller kestrel with blue-gray wings and a lightly spotted chest and belly. Juliet is larger with rufous wings barred with black, and streaking on the chest. As with all falcons, the male is always smaller than the female.

How small are they?
Size: 9-12 in; Wingspan: 20-24 in; Weight: 80-165 g (2.82-5.82 ounces)

How do they hunt and kill prey?
Like all raptors, kestrels swoop down and catch their prey with their feet; however, while other raptors use their powerful talons to kill their prey, falcons have a "tooth" on either side of their beak used for snapping the spinal cord of a bird, rodent, or reptile.

Why do they have black spots on their heads?
The spots under the kestrel’s eyes have a purpose… the black pigment absorbs bright sunlight so it does not reflect back up into the kestrel’s eyes. And so do the spots on the back of the head… the black spots serve as "false eyes," therefore fooling the predator into thinking the back of the head is the face…


Helpful identification tips?
... In flight, look for pointed wings and rapid wingbeats.
... From afar, look for its characteristic tail-bob and hunched silhouette. They pump their tails and bob their heads while perched, especially when agitated. The American Kestrel is the only North American falcon to habitually hover with rapid wing beats, keeping its head motionless while scanning the ground for prey. The kestrel commonly perches along fences and powerlines. It glides with flat wings and wingtips curved upward. It occasionally soars in circles with its tail spread and its wings flat.
...By ear, listen for a "klee" or "killy" sound, usually delivered as a rapid series.http://danlin.textamerica.com/?r=4094418

Barn owls

My first offical volunteer day at the Ojai Raptor Center will be this Sunday. I am looking forward to working with baby owls like these. The down on the owl on the left makes him look like a sheep. Lol. I might pee my pants if I see this guy in person.


http://ojairaptorcenter.org/

Hawk, Sharp-Shinned

Hawk, Sharp-Shinned
Originally uploaded by umarlene.

I saw a sharp-shinned hawk today, perching on a wire overlooking my bird feeders. In order to save the birds I attract with my delicious seeds and oranges, I sent Rudy out into the backyard to scare it away from the feeders. I guess it wasn't scared of a dog standing in the rain with a confused look on her face... but it was scared of Dan's camera. Dan, the finches thank you for your bravery.

Hawk, Sharp-Shinned
Originally uploaded by umarlene.

IMG_4478
Originally uploaded by umarlene.

And what big yellow feet you have

Dan and I went to this place in the middle of nowhere in Mexico to surf and birdwatch, which we could easily do within a few feet from our villa.

This was a Snowy Egret that arrived around lunch time. He lightly stirs the surface of the water with his yellow toes... which may either attract or scare fish into moving out of their hiding places. After eating lunch, he flies back to the mangrove for family time.



Besides befriending a cat named Copa Cabana, taking naps and lounging in pools...



...we ended up on a bird watching tour with Armando who took us on a Jungle Cruise through San Blas. Here are some of the wild things we encountered...

A sun-bathing crocodile.
(If a reptile'’s head and brain become uncomfortably hot before the rest of its body is warm enough for activity, the reptile may open its mouth into a gape, enabling moisture inside the mouth to evaporate to create a cooling effect. )


Pools filled with hundreds of baby crocs, that will eventually replenish the declining population in the mangroves.


This Cormorant was drying its feathers after diving under water for a snack...


This is a Boat-Billed Heron. Check out that head of hair :) This heron is related to our lunch-time visitor, the Snowy Egret.


After the jungle cruise, Armando took us to an old beautiful church which was full of thirsty mosquitoes.

Wiggles update

Looks like someone raised this opossum right!

http://blog.cityvantage.com/wp-images/MVI_0185.AVI

What to do...

I just got a call from my brother's friend because he found a baby hummingbird. It seems like people don't know who to call for help so they end up "raising" the bird themselves. I know that is sounds like a reasonable thing to do, but please don't. Chances are they won't receive the nutrients they need to grow up healthy... and a tame bird will become a dead bird in the wild.

Here is a website with wildlife rehabbers in your area.
http://www.ccwr.org/region5.html

and if you love hummingbirds as much as me, here is a link:
http://www.projectwildlife.org/find-hummingbirds.htm

Wiggles the Baby Opossum

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I spent the last two weeks as a foster mom to a baby opossum. We have a great love/hate relationship. I love him and he hates me. It sounds sad but it is actually wonderful. One of things rehabbers have to worry about is imprinting. If you treat a wild animal like a pet, it will have no chance once released. You will end up wasting your time and end up sending the animal to its death.

Feeding this baby opossum was harder than I thought it would be because he spent half of his feeding time trying to wiggle out of his pouch and the other half calling for his real mommy. Baby opossums don't cry for their moms, they actually make a sneezing sound.

The best part about rehabbing a baby opossum is the chance to educate people on the species. I'm far from being an expert on them but if I can prevent one person from shooting their slingshot at them because they are 'mean' looking, then I am that much happier.

Here are some fun opossum facts for you:

• Only marsupial in North America
• Most teeth of any N. American mammal (they have 50!)
• Nocturnal
• Opposable thumbs on its hind feet for holding onto branches
• prehensile Tail... they need it for grasping branches, balancing & carrying nesting material...but don't hang upside down on trees with it, unless you are watching a Wonderful World of Disney movie
• Plays dead as its defense mechanism: Involuntarily falls down, opens mouth and foams, HR/BR/Temp drop, excretes green liquid from its ass that smells like rotting flesh (so others won't eat him, of course!) Here is a great link to check out: http://www.opossumsocietyus.org/opossum_defense_mechanisms.htm
• If you find a dead on the on the road, there is a chance that it has babies in its pouch still that will die if not rescued.
• Opossums can't climb up a trash can to get in it. The climb other things so they can drop into your trash can. So, to prevent them from getting in there, move the trash can away from the fence, etc.
• They very rarely get rabies. Their body temperature is too low for the rabies virus. The only mammals that are prevalent to rabies in California are the skunk and the bat. Rabies is not transferred via a bite... big myth... it is transferred via saliva. If you find a bat on the ground, DO NOT TOUCH IT. Call a wildlife center ASAP.

Here are some fun opossum facts for me:

• Fox Valley formula - 1:2 ratio
• Don't microwave (warm with a hot water bath)
• Keep in a dark (any light will break it down)
• For malnourished babies (like Wiggles), feed 5 times a day, rather than 4
• 6 hour maximum break at night (feeding times used= 06:00,10:30,15:00,19:30,00:00)
• Start weaning around 100g with fox valley and soggy kitten chow (important for taurine)
• 4/13/05 81g, 4/19/05 92g, 4/28/05 139g

2

E.I.E.I.O

Who would have guessed that wild pigs roam Santa Barbara. These videos are priceless. Make sure you listen very carefully to end of the first one video. You might learn a things or two. It made me pee in my pants. And in the third video, when the pig starts sucking the bottle, is pee in your pants material also.

piglet1.mov

piglet2.mov

piglet3.mov


she hasn't sent me a full bodyshot yet. 

A baby hummingbird

2

I started writing this blog entry a couple days ago. I got as far as "This is pretty much the best day ever" but it is not going to end up that way. I want to stop having bad endings so I will keep the sad stuff to a minimum... more for me probably than for you.

One of my goals at the center is to rehab a hummingbird and release it. I can not imagine anything more rewarding than that and one day it will happen. The hummingbird, which I will call Anna for short, is a Anna's Hummingbird fledgling. She was found on the ground near Campball Hall at UCSB, where years ago I previously spent many afternoons napping in Art History class. Sorry Mom. So, my task is to feed the hummingbird nectar using a dropper every 30 minutes. Feeding Anna is such small increments ended up being not as bad as it sounded, I probably even feed her every 20 minutes. I just felt so priveldged and motivated with this bird. Once the bird fell asleep, it was asleep. Nothing could wake her up. I read that their waking heart rate of 1260 beats per minute drastically drops to only 50 beats per minute during sleep. Crazy. Once awake, Anna did well. She took her first flight, started eating out of the dropper on her own and chirped at me. The following morning, she was fine. She even tried to fly out of her cage. As the day progressed, Anna just stood in the same place, eyes closed and chirping every 3 seconds. I took to her to Vanessa at the Cat and Bird clinic, where she basically died on the spot. Vanessa came over to break the news that she passed away and slowly opened her hands up to show her to me. Staring at her tiny tongue sticking out of her beak, I left there crying like a little baby with that image burned in memory forever. I had such high hopes for such a fragile bird. I miss that silly little bird that I named Anna.


1

The many uses of the ziplock bag

I lost my first bird yesterday. A pigeon came in with a broken leg. This sort of thing isn't uncommon and many survive in wild just fine with only one leg. I don't mind splinting broken bones, but this leg was different... it was turned in the wrong direction, a completely different color, and the bones were stacked up on each other. The poor bird was trembling with pain and I did all I could not to pass out. All I could think of was my brother talking me thru this medical experience as I do with him and his blood draws. We ended up giving the bird a shot of pain meds in its keel and wrapping up the leg with vet tape and popsicle sticks. As I placed it on a comfy t-shirt, I noticed blood coming out of its beak. I don't think that's a good sign. Half an hour later, I give some seed and water in case it feels up to eating. An hour later, its head is down on the t-shirt. I give it another hour, but it's still in the same position. Not a good sign for sure. When picked up, it was as stiff as a board. So I fill out the appropriate paperwork and place the pigeon into a ziplock freezer bag. Unwilling to accept defeat, I stared at its chest to see if its moving. Nothing. I zipped it up and walked towards the freezer. It feels so so strange to place a warm body in a freezer. I felt like I was killing it myself. I triple checked the bird again, made sure that yellow and blue made green, gently laid it near a seagull popsicle and closed the freezer door.

Death is the one thing that kept me away for all these years. I somehow become attached so quickly. I hate that part of my job. But, I would hate it more if it didn't bother me at all.

Eat the tube, Pigeon

I learned how to tube feed pigeons the other day. Strange to think that you can safely shove a tube four inches down their throats and into their crops. The key is to wrap the pigeon up in a towel, sort of like a burrito, to prevent it from moving too much. Holding a syringe of Lakes formula under my chin, I slid the tubing into the left side of the mouth (their right side), watching their feathers slowly lift up as it went down. As soon as the tube was in place, I gave the syringe a slow push, followed by a swifter push. You want to make sure you can empty the contents pretty quickly to prevent any damage. Some birds can die during tube feeding, especially ones with Trichomoniasis ("trich"). If a piece of the trich loosens during the feeding, it can cause lethal bleeding. Some birds may die just from the shock of the procedure which is necessary for their survival. I somehow survived my first two tube feedings with flying colors... the first pigeon was malnourished and the second had trich.

Minnie is the name of my mouse and don't forget it!

Babysitting duty was over a couple weeks ago so I took Minnie back to the Wildlife Center. But, I still see her at least once a week. After each visit with her, an ton of questions race thru my head.... Is she happy here? Will she be adopted soon? Does she remember my scent? Is it ok that I laugh when she runs in her ball full of poop? Should I take her home with me? Will Yoda and Rudy eat her? Can Dan handle having another girl in the house?
Don't bother emailing me....I know am such a sucker for animals. So today at the Center, I made my usual rounds thru the place to see which animals are still around and which are gone for one reason or another. I say hi to the baby dove that loves to perch on my head and then search for Minnie. She is still there but why is there a piece of obnoxious yellow paper taped to her cage? Why does it say M&M? Has someone mistaken my mouse for the candy that melts in your mouth and not in your hands? Um, no. Some craaazy beytch renamed Minnie to M&M. She doesn't even look like a M&M. That idiot. So, I had to do what was right. I turned into junior high Marlene. No, I didn't give myself a bad perm and fluff up my bangs with AquaNet... but I did write 'her name is Minnie' on that obnoxious piece of paper. Wow, I just set that craaazy beytch straight. If she comes on the 9th grade lawn again, I will have to throw her in the trash can. After coming back to reality, I decided it was best to throw that piece of paper away. I am still upset.

Seagull Rescue

Today was crazy. Dan and I were at Target buying a new headset for his cell phone... because I accidently put his fancy wireless bluetooth super duper headset thingy thru the washer and the dryer. I am such a good homemaker. As we were driving out of the parking lot, I notice a seagull standing near the sidewalk and it didn't look too hot. So, Dan kindly drove around the block again so we can take a second look. Sure enough, the seagull was covered with oil. Knowing that there was an oil spill that weekend affecting wildlife from San Pedro to Santa Barbara, Dan and I decided to capture it. I jumped out of the car and tried to corner it as nicely as possible... knowing that it couldn't use its oiled soaked wings to fly away. It didn't work too well because the poor thing was scared and a pretty good runner. So super Dan jumped out of the truck with his handy dandy sleeping bag, unzipped it, held it up in the air and walked towards the seagull. The seagull was so scared of the walking sleeping bag that it ran right into my hands. So I wrapped the seagull in some clothing and held it by my feet in the car. The seagull took out his frustration on my hands... biting me with his sharp beak... who knew seagulls had extendo-necks. After calling the wildlife center and the seabird pond, we found out that there was bus near the Ventura harbor that was helping all oiled wildlife. So we put the seagull in Yoda's carrier... I'm sure the smell of a cat didnt make the bird more comfortable but it was only for short ride to the harbor. Once we got to the bus, a wildlife expert placed the bird into a cardboard carrier and our good deed of the day was complete. Soon enough, it will be washed with some Dawn soap and hopefully re-released.

On a side note, the seagull was not covered with oil from the ocean... it was covered with cooking oil. Some fast food places and restaurants empty their used cooking oil into large containers outside of the buildings. If left uncovered, bad things happen... seagulls end up in the containers of oil and eventually drown. Some workers just keep pouring the hot oil into the containers even if there are live or dead birds floating in them. It happened at the good ol' Carls Jr in SB. I wish I could throw hot oil on those stupid people.



This pelican wasn't one of the lucky birds to survive the oil spill...

Nice ball, Minnie

I have decided to put the trama behind me. As a peace offering, I bought Minnie a ball. I guess to give her a feel of freedom and a chance to explore the world, our at least Dan's office.

Day 1 with the ball: Not so good. She stood in the ball trying to escape out of the air vent cracks...

Day 2 with the ball: Much better. Minnie rolled around the room like a champ, especially once she hit the hardwood floor. She also transformed the ball into a rolling toliet. Run, poop, run. A few minutes of running and pooping eventually led to a piece of poop sticking to her forehead. She might have been oblivious to the entire moment but it made my day.


nice ball

Ten baby jellybeans

Today was a happy day and a sad day. On Friday, Minnie gave birth to 10 hairless pink babies in her cage under my desk at work. Two of the babies appeared dead... motionless and whiter than the rest. To give the babies a better chance of survival, we moved her cage to a dark and quiet office to reduce any additional stress on Minnie. After a couple hours, we checked on Minnie and babies. None of the babies were in the nesting boxes. They the scattered outside of the boxes, and the dead babies appeared to be seperated from the live ones. By instinct, the mother will eat the dead babies to prevent attracting predators to the nest. So, to help Minnie out, John and I scooped the dead ones out of the cage. (Well, brave John did the scooping and scaredy cat Marlene held the ziploc baggie open.) We removed a total of six lifeless babies. Two of the six were half eaten. Removing the dead would allow Minnie to focus on the live remaining babies, and not on the disposal of the dead. So, at the end of the work day, Minnie had 4 babies still with her and I had 6 babies in a baggie that were going into the freezer at home.
By Friday evening, as Minnie sat next to or on top of her babies, it appeared that her instincts had kicked in. But, on Saturday morning, three of the four were motionless. I gently removed the dead from the cage and into the baggie in the freezer. So, one remained. Laying alone on its side with its legs moving, the tiny pink baby squeeked. I was tempted to take the sole survivor out of the cage but I knew it had a much better chance with its mom. On Saturday afternoon, I saw the baby laying next to a sleeping Minnie. On Sunday morning, the cage was a mess and no baby in sight. All that remained was an exhausted Minnie and the skull of the last baby.
I'm not sure how such a happy day turned into a terrible weekend so quickly. Maybe it was because Minnie was possibly a first-time mother. Maybe because she had babies with her brother. Maybe all the babies had deformaties. Maybe its just how things worked out. Maybe life is too fragile. Maybe.

My knocked-up Minnie (sigh)

It's true. My baby is having babies. I guess there was nobody on the hiking trail last week to karate chop them apart. I know Mickey and Minnie are an item in the wonderful world of Disney... but in Ventucky, they are brother and sister... and so, Mickey is going to be a daddy and an uncle all at the same time. Great.

For my on-going wildlife education, here's some facts about pregnant mice:

• Diet Supplements: Cheese, Espolac? formula, Sunflower seeds, Fruit, Increased protein/diary
• Gesstation Period: 21 days
• Nesting box: Need 2 boxes, 1 for babies and 1 for her to take a "break" in
• Babies: Up to 12 babies are possible; if there are more babies than nipples, the babies will have to be seperated into two groups and rotated; they should be rotated every 1-2 hours, 3 max; a third nesting box will be needed for the babies rotated out