10/01/2026
This post is a bit of a PSA. I really enjoy birds. I consider them to be some of my favorite work colleagues. I regularly have my Merlin app open and I've even started reading books about humans and their experiences with wild birds.
It's fall migration season in southern Ontario and there are many birds passing through our area. In the past few days, I've had many little birds on the deck in the morning, looking dead.
Some songbirds travel at night and crash into windows at dawn when the light begins to change. Also, with a large number of "first timers" born this spring or summer, making their way south for the first time, they might be less familiar with windows and glass. Perhaps a bit clumsier too, because they are tired and unfamiliar with the area.
Here are a few things I've found to be helpful when I find stunned birds, keeping in mind I'm not a bird expert.
- If they are on their backs, gently right them again. I'm not sure if this is bird psychology but they seem to understand how to recover when they are back on their feet. If left alone on their backs, they seem less likely to figure out how to right themselves and more likely to "give up".
-Give them a spot to recover that is close to where you found them but out of the rain or strong wind. Birds can lose a lot of heat if they are too stunned to puff out their feathers when they get cold.
-Leave them alone so that you don't add any additional stress. Sometimes they need a longer recovery time than you might think.
From the time I took these pictures this morning, when I had 5 little birds in my care, only one remains and that last one now has bright, alert eyes and more energy. Such a relief!
