What to do if baby towhees fall from a Concord nest
DEAR JOAN >> My friend and I sometimes sit in her backyard in the evenings and enjoy watching the activity around the two hummer feeders.
A couple of weeks ago, two California towhees started frequenting the yard and began working on a nest about 10 feet above the ground in a bushy Razzle Dazzle tree.
Last night, a single towhee was on the nearby fence, hidden by foliage from a large rose bush tree. My friend played an audio clip of the towhee call on an iPad app, and it rushed her! The birds have never been bothered by our presence, but it must have seemed like an intruder was in the area.
Thinking ahead to when the chicks are present, I wondered what to do if one falls to the ground before having flight ability. The nest is high for a towhee, but we could possibly reach up and place the bird back. I suspect this is not a good idea.
Your thoughts?
— Jesse S., Concord
DEAR JESSE >> Your friend sure knows how to stir up trouble, although to be honest, it doesn't take much to get towhees fired up.
If a nestling falls from its home before it's ready to fledge, it's OK to gently return it, but I caution would-be rescuers to make sure the bird really is in need of rescue.
When birds first leave the nest, they can spend more time on the ground than they do in the air, until they get the hang of things and build confidence. They often will sit on the ground, hollering for mom and dad to bring them some food or offer to pay for more flying lessons.
The only way you'll know which do and which don't help is to watch over them for a bit and protect them from wandering predators. If, after a few hours, they're still there, that's a good indication they need a helping hand.
The notion that the parents will reject chicks touched by humans is pure myth, so don't worry about that.
DEAR JOAN >> We have lived here about 6 months. The Argentine ants are abundant in our front and back yards. So far they are not inside the house en masse, but we are seeing more scouts about. We don't like to use poisons. Are anteaters available, trainable?
Do you have any other suggestions? — J. Bell, Santa Cruz
DEAR J. >> Unfortunately, anteaters are native to South America, and the only known predator to Argentine ants is the winter ant (Prenolepis imparis), and you wouldn't want that one in your house, either.
Argentine ants are with us always, but they become more emboldened with weather changes. Too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry — they come inside looking for food and water.
If you find a trail of ants indoors, track them back to their entrance and sprinkle some cinnamon or talcum powder across the threshold. Then you can dampen a paper towel with vinegar and wipe up in the ants or use window cleaner to spray the ones that have already crossed inside.
The powder clogs up the ants' airways, so they avoid walking in it. Added bonus, if you use cinnamon, your house smells like Christmas. You can use ant baits outdoors, but with a super colony that stretches almost the length of California, it's like trying to empty the ocean one teaspoon at a time.