Baby Towhee

A few days ago Tom and I heard some incessant tweeting coming from the parking lot across from our apartment. When we looked out the window, we saw a towhee running back and forth on the fence, flying down to the driveway and back up again. Eventually we were able to spot the cause for all the fuss:

I'd be freaked out too if my baby was in a driveway! This little guy looked a bit too young to fly, so we guessed it must have fallen out of a nest somewhere and hopped over to visit us. The internet informed us that in fact, birds will NOT reject their babies if you touch them. Various rehab sites recommended replacing the baby in the nest, or, if the nest could not be found, making a substitute nest and putting that in a tree.


We used a box that formerly contained a wedding gift to shelter the baby... and after multiple tries of getting the box to stay on a branch, we ducktaped the box to a tree. I have a newfound respect for birds' nest-making skills. The parents seemed a bit confused at first and continued to call, although it could have been because of the two cats who came over to investigate. Finally they must have found the little guy. And in the morning it was gone. Good luck baby towhee!