Fledgling Season: How You Can Help the Baby Birds

With spring well underway and the summer months fast approaching, fledgling season is here once again. In the UK, birds typically breed during spring and summer, so you may already be seeing lots of fluffy little fledglings resting on tree branches or exploring the ground on the hunt for food.

WHAT ARE FLEDGLINGS?

If you're not an avid birder, you might be unaware of the various stages that birds go through between hatching and becoming fully grown. It's important to understand these stages because it will impact how you can interact with them.

Fledglings are young birds that are beginning to develop their flight feathers and leave the nest for the first time. After leaving the nest, fledglings tend to take cover on branches or begin roaming the ground.

HOW TO HELP FLEDGLINGS IN YOUR GARDEN

Fledgling birds are learning how to to survive independently, so it's usually best to just leave them to it.

However, as fledglings continue to grow and develop their strength and hunting capabilities, it can be helpful to put out some fledgling-safe foods to give them a head start.

Baby birds need lots of energy in order to take care of themselves, so take this into consideration when choosing what foods to use. Here's what we recommend:

- Seed mixes consisting of smaller, nibble-sized pieces that are easy for little fledglings to eat. Really Wild Bird Food's High Energy Fledgling Mix™ is a great choice: https://www.reallywildbirdfood.co.uk/seed-mixes/high-energy-fledgling-mix-/fledgling

- Mini suet pellets are a great source of healthy fats and protein for growing birds. Shop mini suet pellets here: https://www.reallywildbirdfood.co.uk/suet---fat-balls/mini-suet-pellets--save-10-/minisp

- Mealworms are another fantastic source of protein for fledgling birds. It's best to provide live mealworms, but if you're not comfortable with that, dried mealworms will do. You can purchase mealworms here: https://www.reallywildbirdfood.co.uk/categories/bird-foods/mealworms---worms

Other than putting out food, the best thing you can do for fledglings is leave them alone. You don't want those baby birds to become reliant on human intervention.

The only exception is if the fledgling's life is in immediate danger. Young birds are at increased risk of being caught or injured by predators like cats, so if there is a clear and present threat, you can attempt to move the baby bird somewhere safer, such as a nearby tree branch.

Never move a fledgling too far away from where you found them, though, as their parents often choose to stay close by.

The Really Wild Bird Food Co.
Street End Farm
Ashton Lane
Bishop's Waltham
Hampshire
SO32 1FS

Telephone: 01489 896785
Email: sales@reallywildbirdfood.co.uk
Website: https://www.reallywildbirdfood.co.uk/

Really Wild Bird Food is one of the UK's favourite bird food suppliers. We grow a wide variety of bird seed and cereal crops right here on our family farm in Hampshire, and we take care to ensure that all our bird feeds are of the very highest quality.

We also offer a wide range of other items (including feeders, bird baths and nesting boxes) to help you attract wild birds to your garden. All of these products are subject to the same strict standards as our own home-grown bird feeds.

This release was published on openPR.