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Wild Bird Fund

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Wild Bird Fund

The Wild Bird Fund is a nonprofit wildlife rehabilitation and education center in NYC.
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07/06/2025

✨UPDATED GUIDE✨ Does that young songbird need your help? If the bird is a fledgling, the answer is: probably not.

A fledgling is a bird who’s just left the nest. They don’t fly much at first and might seem small or scruffy, but this is normal. If they can stand or hop and are covered in feathers, they’re likely fine. Their parents are usually nearby foraging for food to feed them.

A young bird only needs a rescue if they’re naked or partly naked (that’s a nestling), obviously injured or very lethargic. In those cases, please bring the bird to a wildlife rehabber right away. Never provide any food or water.

If a fledgling is in the street or in a high-foot-traffic area, it’s OK to move them to a nearby bush or somewhere safer but only a few feet away! The parents must still be able to find them or the bird won’t survive.

**Pigeons are the exception. Pigeons stay in the nest a long 4 weeks and look almost like adults when they fledge. Usually if a pigeon looks too young to be out of the nest (short wings, short tail, fuzzy head), they are.**

We hope this guide will help you identify the most common songbird fledglings seen in NYC and beyond during spring and summer. Contact us if you’re not sure! We love to puzzle over bird photos. 🦤

And please donate to your local wildlife rehabbers! https://wbf.app.neoncrm.com/np/clients/wbf/donation.jsp

07/05/2025

Good morning. Here’s a squirrel eating a tomato.🍅

Our many spring squirrel babies are now transitioning into larger enclosures at the clinic and some into soft release cages outside. Meanwhile, we humans are taking a big cleansing breath in preparation for the August brood. Eastern gray squirrels typically have 2 rounds of babies, which means so do weeeee!

You say tomayto, we say tomahto. Let’s order some more food for these babies and discuss it over a salad. Please visit our donate page to help: https://wbf.app.neoncrm.com/np/clients/wbf/donation.jsp 🥦

📷: Michelle Talich

07/04/2025

Yes, we’re open today! Wildlife rehab never takes a holiday. If you need us, we’ll be here 9-7, caring for 549 patients. (550, 551, 552....)

Please be considerate of wildlife today (and by extension your local wildlife rehabbers!):

⭐️ no personal fireworks
⭐️ no dogs on the beach
⭐️ take your trash out with you
⭐️ dispose of your fishing line

And have a safe Fourth everyone! 🍉

Your donations make our work possible: https://wbf.app.neoncrm.com/np/clients/wbf/donation.jsp

📷: Phyllis Tseng, Sara Bucior

07/03/2025

Because robins do a lot of their foraging on the ground, especially in warm months when worms are plentiful, it’s common to see their fledglings standing, sitting or hop-hop-hopping. They’re polka-dotted, they’re fuzzy-headed and they give some of the best fledgefrown around.

And most of the time, they don’t need help. Their parents are nearby and foraging to feed them. If you’re not sure, watch for a bit to see if a parent shows up.

When does a fledgling need help?

If a young bird seems lethargic, has been sitting in the same place for hours, has a visible injury, or is covered in bugs, that bird does need your help. Gently place them in a box or paper bag and bring them to WBF or a wildlife rehabber near you.

If they’re active and alert but just in a dangerous spot, like the middle of a street, it’s good to gently move them somewhere safe, like a bush. But not far! Their parents must be able to find them.

And please never provide food or water. This will usually cause more harm than good, and can even be fatal.

Help a robin! Or blue jay, grackle, sparrow, duckling....the list is long! Donate to all our growing birds via bit.ly/wbfdonate

📷: Nooa Kuusisto

07/01/2025

DUCKLINGS! So. Many. Ducklings.
Ducklings ducklings ducklings ducklings!

Every group of ducklings that arrives at the clinic is assigned a letter. We’re now up to G! Groups A and B have been released, but we still have an in-house duckling population of 32 from 5 families, all mallards. The logistics of their separate housing, feeding and swim times are rather complicated, but fortunately our waterfowl team are well up to the task.

If you’d like to help us feed all these many ducklings, please visit bit.ly/wbfdonate 🐤🐤🐤

🎥: Raina Bien, Rachel Frank

06/28/2025

We spent a brief but memorable couple of days in the company of this fledgling peregrine, who was found on the street near the Brooklyn Bridge. This healthy fledgling likely would have been fine after a few days, but the hazards for an endangered raptor under those circumstances are too great.

Already very strong and defensive, this falcon will no doubt have a long, fruitful career as a hunter. He’s now in the capable hands of The Raptor Trust, who will raise him the rest of the way and work with the NYS DEC on release.

Baby season is now in FULL THROTTLE here. Please consider donating to help us care for all these precious kids: bit.ly/wbfdonate

📷: Terra Tirapelli

06/27/2025

Our first nestling gull of the summer! 🥹

This big fuzzy baby is a herring gull. These gulls commonly nest on roofs throughout the city, so it’s not unusual to find their fledglings in awkward places around town, but this nestling came down way too early. Named Speckle, he’s wobbly on his feet but is a great eater. We hope to have him up and around soon!

This baby was one of 113 patients we admitted on Wednesday! That was a new record until yesterday when we admitted another 116. Most of these are nestlings and fledglings. Our nurseries are full! Can you help?

Please donate at bit.ly/wbfdonate 💕

🎥: Terra Tirapelli

06/25/2025

“I like New York in June. How about you?” — Runaway, our unidentified softshell turtle, keeping it cool and oblivious to our suffering 🥵

Our softshell guest is riding out this 100-degree weather in his happy place beneath the water, as he was meant to do. Rescued from a street in the East Village, where he’d been dumped, this aquatic turtle (likely raised for food) arrived with wounds and sores on both sides of his shell, and scrapes on his legs. We’ve been treating the wounds and providing lots of supportive care. The result is that he’s started eating on his own (superworms!) and the wounds are healing well.

We’ll be finding Runaway a forever home once he’s fully recovered.

Stay hydrated everyone! We’re almost through this.

🎥: Rachel Frank

06/23/2025

“Please pick me up!”

During this heatwave, it’s so important that an injured or sick bird get rescued right away. If you see a bird in trouble — sitting on the sidewalk, huddled against a wall — please don’t walk on by, hoping someone else will help. As long as the bird is a pigeon or smaller, simply pick it up and place it into a paper bag, ventilated box or whatever you happen to have handy. For safety, wear gloves, use a cloth or simply wash your hands thoroughly afterward.

Then bring the bird to WBF or a wildlife rehabber near you (find one using ahnow.org).

In NYC, if you need help transporting, you can email [email protected] to see if a volunteer can help. But please contain the bird first. It could take hours for a volunteer to get there. Keep the bird in a cool, dark, safe space INSIDE while waiting for help transporting.

And finally, please do not provide any food or water. Never put water in a bird’s mouth or pour water onto the bird. This is something people tend to do in the heat, but it’s not helpful and can even be fatal.

Just look at this precious and precocious squeaker, who was out of her nest much too early! After two attempts to locate her based on a report, a rescuer finally found her hiding beneath cardboard that had been put out for recycling. She wouldn’t have survived there long. What a relief that she’s now safe and being cared for. 💕

06/22/2025

Last month’s Flocktail Party was a wild night of good friends and goodwill in a gorgeous mansion overlooking Central Park. Food and drink, art and music, and a red carpet brimming fabulous bird-themed looks. What’s better?

It’s an immense pleasure to see our community come together to celebrate our local wildlife and support our work to help them. We are grateful to all who attended, donated, purchased auction items or volunteered generously of their time and talents — and talons!

A shout-out to our warm hosts at the Ukrainian Institute of America, who made all feel welcome.

Delicious vegetarian and vegan cuisine: Elegant Affairs
AV: Adam Corrigan
Emcee: L.J. Ganser

We'd like to specially call out our Benefactors Bruce Baughman, David Lei, Anne Stringfield and Alex Timbers.

And:
Special guest: Bill Irwin
Honoree: Chris Allieri

We are so grateful for the:
Band: Jenny Lee Mitchell (clarinet, vocals), David Gibson (trombone), Kiku Collins (trumpet), Aldo Perez (guitar)
Photography: Belathée Photography
Raptor ambassadors: Tenafly Nature Center
Flocktail film: Michael Elliott
Invitation design: Carisa Swenson
Flowers: Ze-Ze's Flowers
Makeup: Deborah Altizio

Liquor sponsor: El Buho Mezcal
Beer sponsor: Allagash Brewing Company

All who donated auction items, live and online!

Thank you to our Nest Builders Christina Caragine, Gail Clark, Deborah Plachta & Alan Diner, George & Rachelle Fan, Amanda Parsels, Rafael J. Schnitzler and Rebecca Simmons

An extended round of applause for gala director extraordinaire Cameron King and our gala committee Chris Duran, Catherine Quayle and Joanna Lisanti.

And volunteers: Joseph Martinez, Amanda Clark, Kevin Kinsella and Ruth Hochberg

THANK YOU ALL!
(If we accidentally omitted you, we’re sorry! Please let us know.)
All photos courtesy of Belathee Photography. Attendees will receive a link to more photos.

06/20/2025

It’s Feed-a-Friend Friday! You wouldn’t think that mockingbirds knew how to share, but these fledglings demonstrate otherwise. They’ll be fierce rivals as adults, but for now, insects for all!

Why is this happening? One guess is that the instinct to feed a gaping bird is very strong and develops quite young. We’ve seen this behavior occasionally in other species.

This is your reminder to invite a friend out to lunch. Or buy lunch for a fledgling by donating to WBF! bit.ly/wbfdonate

🎥: Lily Lugo

06/19/2025

When questioned about the mess, some of the American kestrels had better alibis than others.

These are a mere 9 of the 29 kestrel fledglings we’ve admitted so far this season. Meanwhile, raptor fledgefest rages on!

We send a huge shoutout to our friends at The Raptor Trust, who host the ultimate raptor rave over at their place, generously taking on the longer-term care of our kestrels.

📷: Michelle Talich

Address

New York, NY

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 7pm
Tuesday	9am - 7pm
Wednesday	9am - 7pm
Thursday	9am - 7pm
Friday	9am - 7pm
Saturday	9am - 7pm
Sunday	9am - 7pm

Website

https://www.wildbirdfund.org/

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Keeping NYC wild

The only wildlife rehabilitation center in New York City, the nonprofit Wild Bird Fund treats more than 7,000 patients a year, including red-tailed hawks and peregrine falcons, as well as gulls, robins, songbirds and, yes, lots of pigeons. Squirrels, opossums and groundhogs too! The city can be a tough place for wildlife, but it’s also a thriving habitat, with more than 250 species of birds recorded in Central Park. We aim to keep it that way. To this end, we also provide wildlife education programs to schools and organizations throughout the city. We do all this through the generous donations of many caring New Yorkers.

Photo: Groucho, the Eastern screech-owl by Ardith Bondi