baby birds

[Jax]

We are finding alot of dead baby birds in our garden. They are not close to each other, neither are they near their nests but they are real baby baby birds. They barely look old enough for their eyes to be open?? Any ideas??

[Nicos]

Magpies????

[Caro]

Cuckoos? Chucking the competition out the nest?

[Two_Sheds]

Exactly what I thought ... cuckoos. Magpies would eat them, not leave them on the ground.

[Jax]

I dont really know. Is there anything I can do about it? Its horrible waking up and finding more dead baby birds. The nests arent open though. They are behind the faschia bit behind the guttering of the house if you know the bit Im on about (sorry not very technical with house bits)

[womble]

I'm afraid that's nature!

[di]

Don't the Mothers sense if one's unhealthy and throw it out?

[Nicos]

I thought cookoos at first too- but isn't there a national shortage of them- and wouldn't you hear them calling???

[janeyo]

this is interesting as we found one on the path on the way to school yesterday - and no nests or trees in sight. My 5 yr old was fascinated as you could see all the outlines of its organs etc.

[SueA]

Do you know what kind of birds they are? If they're behind the fascias they could be house sparrows, starlings or maybe house martins or even swallows. It does sound like something is throwing/removing them from the nest, could be a bigger sibling, a parent if the baby has died or even something like they showed on Springwatch the other year where a swallow threw out it's rivals babies before mating with the female to produce his own!

[Jax]

I think they are starlings.

[reetnproper]

Starlings!!!!!!

The starlings in our roof are the worst parents ever put on the face of this earth!!!! Every year for the last 6 years we've had dead babies scattered hither and thither and all from the same nest site.

I wouldn't ever want to come back as a baby starling because they really and trully are dreadfully careless parents. It's a miracle any live to be adult birds

Reet
x

[di]

Poor Starlings!

Considering their numbers they can't be so bad.

Having hatched several chicks...and I'm sure there's lots on Rule the Roost that have found the same...you rarely get a 100% hatch rate,maybe they'd already died and as Sue suggests the Mum is just clearing them out from the nest.