Expert: Julia Booth - 11/2/2008

Question
i came across an injured woodpecker(fairly small) w/ red head and white belly. appears to have broken wing-- can hop and is alert (hopped under a SUV for safety). a neighbor said he would put him in a box on his windowsill for the time being. he probably needs a vet.  what can we feed him?  the neighbor has birds.  would the woodpecker injure the other birds while he was nursed back to health?  other than calling a VET or the Audubon society is there anything else to do? thanks!

Answer
Bird's bones are very fragile and easily injured. But they can repair. If he is indeed injured, he will probably need professional help to ensure that the wing heals properly. If it doesn't, he will not be able to fly.

http://www.tc.umn.edu/~devo0028/contactN.htm#ny

Here is a link to the wildlife rehabilators in the state of NY. Many of them will come to you and pick the animal up themselves.

In the meantime, depending on his mobility, any large seeds will do -peanuts, sunflower, safflower etc. They also like suet cakes and small insects. He can drink water from a shallow dish. If you've got snow, they like to eat small amounts of that for the moisture.

I wouldn't recommend putting him in a cage with other birds, simply because you have no idea what he will do, or what they will do to him.

Hope this helps,

Julia