Birding/chimney sweep

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Expert: Julia Booth - 7/12/2010


Question

CHIMNEY SWEEP SIDE VIE
I have been raising a chimney sweep for 3 days.  He was in an industrial area and would have been run over by heavy equipment or eaten by fire ants, so there was no choice but to bring him home.  He has grown so fast!  In just 3 days he lost all of his fuzzy baby head and now he looks like Einstein!  His wings have quit shedding the quill and his tail feathers are all intact.  He had a hint of red on his chest, now it is all over his entire underside.  He is preening himself and doing the fanning wing thing.  How much longer do I care for him before setting him free?  There are cats in the area and I just can't let him go around here.  Will he be able to eat on his own if I just go to the woods and let him loose?  I red that they eat in the air, gnats, mosquitoes, etc.  Too bad about the cats as we have a lot of flying bugs around here that I'd love for him to eat.  Would he be too tame and fly down to me if I turned him loose here?  I know I cannot keep a bird that needs to fly.  He is not wounded.

Answer
It's hard to let them go, after taking care of them like that. But as odd as it may sound, their best bet for survival is in the wild.

Generally they fledge around 15-19 days. If he is uninjured and developing normally, I see no reason why he shouldn't be ready to go at that point. He is driven by instinct and will know what to do, once you set him free. The belief that raising a bird compromises its chances of survival is an urban myth. Only birds of prey (hawks, eagles etc) appear to be affected by human interference.

No need to go to the woods. Just go out in front of your house.

Don't be surprised if it hangs around, or returns in the spring to build a nest somewhere around your home.

Kudos to you for caring for this bird,

Julia

Julia Booth

Expertise

I can answer questions about bird identification (by sight or sound), behavior, distribution, population, conservation, mating, nesting, fledging and feeding. I do have some practical knowledge about foreign species, but identification skills are limited in that arena. Bear in mind that as much as I know, it's possible that at least some of you will ask a question that I am unable to answer. At which point I would direct you to wherever or whomever I thought could provide you with that information.

Experience

I have 15 years birding experience in Southern California.

Organizations
Audubon Society

Education/Credentials
My education is in art and photography -but I have a substantial portfolio of nature related work.

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