Article: Country Living: ; Tread carefully when 'rescuing' baby birds; Mother bird likely will return, so keep watch and repair nest if possible

IT'S that time of year-wild baby birds are hatching in nests and sometimes, unfortunately, they need our help. Or do they? It's tempting to help, but wildlife rehabilitation experts will tell you to think twice before "rescuing" babies you find on the ground.

A fledgling baby, for example, may simply be taking a rest, or waiting for its parent to come feed it. Some species of birds are actually ground-nesters - unless a ground-nester's baby appears weak, as if it's not being fed, leave it alone.

In other cases, such as that of a destroyed nest, you may be able to fix the nest and leave the baby where it belongs.

You can pick up a nest, put it back together, place it in a basket or shoebox, ...

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