(Photos and article by Anita Fernandez)
A sunny morning bird walk turned into a bird rescue on Friday morning, October 17, at the Birch Street Community Garden in Concord. A popular birding location, the gardens were filled this morning with hundreds of vocal Red-winged Blackbirds and several species of sparrows. One sparrow in particular, however, was not having a pleasant start to the day. Several NH Audubon staff members and a volunteer noticed some movement on the ground. It was a White-crowned Sparrow struggling in one of the garden plots, its legs having become entangled in some plastic garden netting that had torn free of its posts and fallen over to the ground. Senior Biologist Pam Hunt knelt and expertly took the bird in hand, keeping it from struggling and harming itself further. President Doug Bechtel sprinted back to his vehicle to retrieve a pair of scissors, and within minutes, the bird was free to continue on its way. Gardens can contain many resources for wildlife, but watch out for and correct potential hazards. Garden netting is available with various size openings, and depending on the purpose of the netting, material with larger-sized holes can help wildlife have more room to maneuver. The most important factor, regardless of size, is that all garden netting must be kept upright and taut to prevent wildlife from becoming entangled.
