Random Thoughts

[Rev. Rye]

There are two types of cases where you shouldn’t help a baby bird that’s fallen out of its nest. The first is when it has most of its feathers, because it’s a fledgling that’s jumped out of the nest of its own accord and its mother is probably not too far away. The second is if it’s this little guy:



Because fuck him.

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This is a cuckoo chick. Its egg was laid in a nest made by another bird. Within a few hours of hatching, it has almost certainly systematically destroyed any and all rivals for its surrogate mother’s care. If they haven’t hatched yet, it will heft the eggs over the nest, destroying any chance for them to live. If they have, they’ll heft the hatchlings over the nest. While I haven’t actually seen it, some commenters appear to have seen the remains of a dead broodmate. And it looks like this time, he’s fallen prematurely from the nest and he has only himself to blame.

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