Ms. Bird nursed back to health by Wildlife Center

Wildlife Center worker takes ailing
Ms. Bird in for examination.

Ms. Bird got another visit to the South Florida Wildlife Center this month.

The South Florida Wildlife Center is a partner of the Humane Society of the United States. The people there really care. The operation is impressive. An "ambulance" responded when we called Aug. 15 to report that Ms. Bird seemed in distress.

She wasn't eating, neighbors reported, and she had spent the night before on a low perch instead of high in a tree as usual. In the morning she stayed on that perch, appearing to be asleep sometimes.

Neighbors agreed that it was time to call for help. I made the call and a worker came right over and collected her.

The diagnosis, apparently after X-rays at the Center, was that she had a collapsed egg inside her. (We knew she had built a nest but hadn't laid any eggs.)

We read on the Internet that having an egg stuck is a life-threatening condition.

After it was removed and a course of drugs was administered Ms. Bird was released to us to be returned to her home neighborhood. We brought her back in a borrowed cage.

We're glad to have Ms. Bird back and grateful to the South Florida Wildlife Center for helping her back to health.

Back in her old neighborhood Aug. 25, 2015.

Mr. Bird's mate stays on for now

This may be the last picture we shot of White Bird and Mr. Bird together. It demonstrates how comfortable they were with one another.

White Bird seems to have chosen to remain in the neighborhood despite the death of her great friend Mr. Bird (see previous post). We believe White Bird is a female and quite young. So it is always possible that she will seek her fortune elsewhere.

For the moment she continues to patrol the neighborhood. She apparently roosts in different places at night so I, at least, never know where to find her.

Our neighbor Sophia credits White Bird with helping us find the body of Mr. Bird the morning he was killed. She says that White Bird appeared at her door but would not accept any food, and then went down to the seawall to peer into the river. This drew Sophia's attention to the seawall footer. One house down, under a projecting dock, she saw the body of Mr. Bird.

If White Bird had not behaved in this unusual fashion we might never have found the body. It would have floated away when the tide came up. Probably we would still be wondering where our beautiful blue peacock had gone. At least now, we know.

Last night Sophia brought over some flowers for the grave. As nice as they are, they will never match the terrific joy Mr. Bird brought into our lives during the 16 years he spent here.