12/09/2026
Its that time of year again! Baby bird bonanza! Fledglings are commonly found on the ground during Spring. Here is our guide to knowing whether the bird you come across needs your help.
🐦 It’s natural to want to help a tiny, fluffy bird that appears to be alone — but **most baby birds found on the ground do NOT need to be rescued.** In many cases, they are fledglings learning to fly, while their parents are nearby watching, feeding and protecting them.
🪶 Is it a fledgling?
A fledgling is usually partly or fully feathered, alert, able to stand or hop, and may flap or make short attempts at flying.
**If it looks healthy, leave it alone.** Move yourself, children and pets away and give the family some space. The parents may be nearby but reluctant to approach while humans are watching.
Don't assume that because you can't see the parents, they've abandoned their baby.
❤️ When DOES a bird need help?
Contact a wildlife rescuer or bring the bird to a veterinarian if:
- Has an obvious injury, such as a broken wing or leg (you may see blood, inability to walk, and/or a "dropped wing" where the bird is unable to hold both wings up across its back)
- Is bleeding or struggling to breathe
- Is extremely weak, collapsed, unusually still or unable to stand
- Has been caught or attacked by a cat or dog — **even if you can't see an injury**
- Is in immediate danger from traffic, predators or another unavoidable hazard
- Is a very young, mostly featherless chick that has fallen from its nest and cannot be safely returned
🌿 What if it's in danger?
If a healthy fledgling is sitting somewhere genuinely dangerous, such as a road or directly where a dog or cat can reach it, you may be able to move it **a short distance to a nearby sheltered spot**, such as a shrub or low branch.
Keep the bird as close as possible to where you found it. Its parents are much more likely to find it there.
And remember: **some species naturally raise their young on the ground**, so a chick being on the ground isn't automatically a problem.
🪺 What about a fallen nest?
If a nest has fallen from a tree and the chicks are uninjured, the best option can be to place the nest and chicks back in a nearby sheltered location where the parents can continue caring for them.
If you can't reach a safe location, make holes in the bottom of a bucket (to prevent water filling it and drowning the baby), add leaf litter and small branches and place the baby inside. Hang the bucket from a secure location, out of reach of dogs and cats.
🚨 If the bird really does need rescuing
Don't try to raise a wild baby bird yourself. In Australia, native wildlife should be cared for by appropriately authorised wildlife carers and rehabilitators.
This ensures appropriate feeding, rehab exercises and flock members are provided.
Keep cats, dogs and people away. If you need to contain an injured bird while arranging professional help, place it gently in a secure, ventilated cardboard box lined with a towel, keep it **warm, dark and quiet**, and **do not give it food or water** unless instructed by a wildlife professional or veterinarian.
💚 **The best help you can give is sometimes to do nothing at all.**
A baby bird alone doesn't necessarily mean an abandoned baby bird.
**Before you pick it up, observe from a distance. Give the parents a chance to come back.**
🐦 _Cute doesn't always mean helpless — sometimes it means "I'm learning to be a bird."_
Victoria’s Help for Injured Wildlife service
