AboutRoger 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 thirty eight years as a professional ornithologist - research, teaching, author, speaker, webmaster of Ornithology.com . Have written thirty scientific papers, two bird field guides, a textbook in ecology and two recent books entitled "Amazing Birds" and "Birds of New England". Have traveled to over 80 countries watching birds.
Question I read an answer you gave about releasing a small sparrow the sooner the better, why can she not keep the bird as a pet if it is already that tame? How would you know for sure if he will make it?
Answer First, it is illegal. Federal and state laws protect all wild birds against harassment, collecting of nests or eggs, keeping dead birds, or keeping any live birds as pets.
Second,I don't know for sure if the bird will make it, but I also don't know for sure it will make it in a cage, either. Most people do not know how to care for wild birds and their nutritional needs change over the year. If they aren't fed the right food at the right time, they will die or develop diseases. They are much better off in the wild, which is where they belong. In a cage, they have no chance to breed, so the bird is good as dead. In the wild, they might have offspring - they at least have a chance at a normal life.
