Moving a bird's nest with baby birds?
Question:We have a hole in our roof above the front door. I heard yesterday some cheeping going on and a robin flying out of the hole. I am guessing there is a nest in there with several newly hatched birds. Problem is, the roofer we scheduled a while ago is coming tomorrow to fix the roof! How can I move the nest and not endanger the babies? And although my husband objects, should we tell the roofer to come by later? He will not be fixing the hole right away, but we are getting a whole new roof and all the commotion will probably startle the mother and her young. How long does it take for the babies to leave the nest? I'm really worried.
Answers:
Heavens! What a predicament! I would not hesitate to tell the roofer what's going on. He may have encountered a similar situation. If there is any way to look in (without touching the babies) and see how large they are. If they are bald, there is no way you can leave them there. They won't be old enough for the mother to get them out. If they have feathers all over, they might have a chance. But you MUST tell the roofer about the birds! There IS one possibility, but it is somewhat iffy. You could lift the entire nest into a small box, and mount it somewhere on the front of the house NEAR where it was, so that the mother can easily find them again. In any event, all the noise will be a BIG problem for babies & mother bird. Frankly if it were happening to me, I WOULD NOT HESITATE to ask the roofer if you can reschedule the job for a later date.
Depends on how old the chicks are now, generally by 6wks they are off! Let them start in another area and by the time they reach the front door hopefully the babies will have flown. Moving the nest is critical. So best choice leave it where it is and hope time is with them.
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