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Birding/inadvertantly moved a nest

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Expert: - 5/28/2009


Question
I discovered that I had house finches nesting in a hanging basket after I had moved it for several days.  A new nest appeared in a nearby basket - both have eggs but only one of them has a mama bird in the nest with it.  It has only been 2 days since I found the nests but how do I know if the one has been abandoned?  What should I do with the eggs if it has been abandoned?

Thanks

Answer
Well, if you don't see any parents attending the nest, it has been abandoned. If you are SURE it has been abandoned, you can remove the eggs. It is VERY difficult to hatch wild bird eggs and raise the young, so unless a local bird rehab center wants to take on that effort, you can just destroy them. Thanks for your concern.

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Roger Lederer

Expertise

Any and all about WILD birds - the science of ornithology. Information about birdwatching, ecology, conservation, migration, behavior, banding, rehabilitation, feeding, songs, binoculars, identification, and careers in ornithology. No questions about pet or caged birds, please.

Experience

Have a PhD and over forty years as a professional ornithologist - research, teaching, author, speaker, webmaster of Ornithology.com . Have written thirty scientific papers, three bird field guides, a textbook in ecology and two recent books entitled "Amazing Birds" and "Birds of New England". Have traveled to over 90 countries watching birds.

Education/Credentials
PhD in Zoology/Ornithology; Emeritus Professor of Biological Sciences; former Dean of the College of Natural Sciences at California State University, Chico

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