Dead bird

Posted by Barney on October 25, 2002

In Reply to: Dead bird posted by Belinda Judy on October 23, 2002

: Does anyone know what it means when you find a dead bird at your back door? And no, it wasn't the cat.

If one finds a dead bird at the back door and make the obvious determination that it's not a cat then other options have to be considered. Firstly if it has feathers and wings and can be positively identified as a particular species of bird - by consulting a suitable reference - then that's a good first step in the right direction. The next thing to do is to perform an autopsy on the corpse and determine the cause of death - more often than not it's 'death by predator' but on a significant percentage of occasions death is caused by catastrophic damage to the brain arising as a result of the bird crashing into window glass at speed. Unless the bird is big enough and fresh enough to eat it is wise to dispose of the remains as soon as possible as they can become a health hazard if left unattended.

There is little else to be said regarding dead birds found on ones back doorstep but it is as well that one learns to recognise these creatures at a glance since to mistake, for example, a cow for a Green Woodpecker would be a gross and embarrassing mistake and difficult to live down.

The procedure to be followed on finding dead birds on the front doorstep is identical to the "back door dead bird discovery, determination and disposal method" outlined above.