From Birth to Death: 6 days in 6 min - bird chicks life best moments

May, 2022 Best moments of life of blackbird chicks. Includes plenty of sweat moments including a friendly cat visit. The chicks life ends with a tragic death due to starving. The bird stopped feeding them for some reason and they died within a day.
I am clueless in regards to what could have triggered such a behavior. If you have ideas please share in the comments. Perhaps it got tired of feeding them and did not have enough food for it self.

[@exidy-yt]

Really goes to show how a bird parent can NOT slack off with feeding growing chicks at ALL, it's astounding to see how fast the chicks wither and die within a few hours without a meal, it seemed the newborn chick survived longer without food at all before dying off. Great video, thanks for not flinching from the sad ending that happens to a good many clutches.

[@backyardnature101]

Totally agree, I was not aware that such situation can happen when the bird cannot find food all of a sudden. But there are so many challenges on the way for the bird to successfully bing up the chicks. E.g. last year a magpie pulled out a chick from the nest, from the same location like on the footage.

[@Cy93]

It's pretty much the same as human babies though. U need to keep feeding them. As a mother I know the struggle of feeding often loool 😭

[@backyardnature101]

@@Cy93 As I understood the first clutch of the year is more difficult for these birds as it happens in the spring. Not that big variety of food available and there are usually more chicks in the clutch. So yes perhaps helping them with food is more relevant during the spring.

[@kimdawcatgirl]

I have a blackbird mom feeding just two chick's. I think with yours, she was bringing back some big food. I have seen overstuffed chick's that literally choke on the food. It doesn't go down far enough into the crop and they don't process it. They can go almost two days without a meal if fed properly. Cat kibble is a part of my local blackbird diet. They steal if from my cats, so when I raise orphaned babies, I give them kibble that I soak in water, squeeze the water out and use a hemostat to feed them.

[@backyardnature101]

Thanks for the comments and the suggestion. As about big food, I only included several moments from all feeding moments into footage, the bird was bringing plenty of worms too the other days. But perhaps you are right.. as one day without food sounds too short of a period. This time I bought dried mealworms which I am planning to soak into water and provide to bird if needed. But this time there is only one chick so I suppose I better not intervene and the bird manage it until she will be lacking food.

[@michealbell1088]

The cat was thinking like "I will fall to my last 9th live this ain't the move for me ill catch me a field mouse". But since the cat waited the birds came to him once they died of starvation.

[@ColleenHershon]

Unfortunately, the survival rate for songbirds like this is only about 40%. That is why they will lay eggs 2 or 3 times a season. The eggs or the babies are easy prey for squirrels, cats, racoons, and even blue jays or crows. Nests can get destroyed by strong winds or accidentally by humans. Sadly, the odds are against them. It is fascinating to watch them, though. Thanks for sharing.

[@backyardnature101]

You are totally right in regards to the odds against them, did not think about it before started watching them. But somehow they adapt and succeed … in those few cases which keeps them from extinction I guess.

[@ColleenHershon]

@@backyardnature101 I volunteer with a wildlife rescue, and we get literally hundreds of songbirds every year, mostly babies. Sometimes they need a little help from us big, bad humans, and I'm happy to oblige.

[@backyardnature101]

@@ColleenHershon I am surprised about hundred cases, did not know that it is so common to help out to the birds. So good you are doing it. Any information towards under which circumstances the baby birds end at the rescue place the most? People just stumble up at the right moment? This time I am also monitoring more closely the last clutch and being on stand by to provide food for them, just to not want to intervene so the bird does not end up over feeding.

[@ColleenHershon]

@@backyardnature101 A lot of times it's when people cut down a tree and didn't realize there was a nest, or when their cat catches one. But also when people find one on the ground that may have been dropped by a predatory bird or mammal or just simply fell out of a nest.

[@ColleenHershon]

Good luck with the monitoring. If I had a bird cam like you, I wouldn't be able to pull myself away!

[@jimfisher9749]

Inflation is no joke

[@THECREATION369]

That's pretty much seems like that what it was , or she was just somewhere mating, to restart the cycle

[@joelmumie519]

Probably wanted abortion but couldn't fly out of state so....

[@melaniebaker2012]

I knew baby birds were fragile, but I had no idea they could die from not being fed for less than 1 day. They're like living, breathing embryos that need constant nourishment.

[@backyardnature101]

That is true. Did not imagine that either.. but perhaps food was not the single factor… it is hard to know for sure why they died

[@PiramPamPam]

As birds are kind of dinosaurs they need heat like reptiles in first few days after hatching. It will take around 4 days for chicks from adult flocks and 5 to 6 days for birds from young flocks for the thermoregulatory system to behave homeothermically - constant body temperature. Also, precise temperature and humidity is essential for optimum growth of newly hatched birds. Initially, relative humidity greater than 50% is required. Hatchlings (without feathers) should be maintained at 95°-97°F (35°-36°C). And I am not even mentioning food...

[@MrGoMario]

Poisoned with the earthworms on day 5 😥

[@hokage_minato_4]

I think she have become a widow. The father should also be feeding them along with the mother. She's been finding food by herself, so it took longer and exhausting for her to find food for them. The dad probably died 1-2 days before the hatch. Setting a tray of mealworm is good for the breeding ground for birds.

[@backyardnature101]

Thank you for your comment and suggestion about food. I will apply your advice. With regards to becoming widow, she actually is trying it one more time and laid an egg yesterday. Not sure if she can do it alone. But I am afraid of magpies and they are flying around and last year attacked the nest. Do you have ideas how to protect the nest against them? The problem is that the magpie and black bird are almost the same size. I am only thinking of screening the nest to shield it from direct visibility from outside the shed, but I am almost sure that this will not help much. Magpies are smart.

[@hokage_minato_4]

@@backyardnature101 If she started laying eggs again. She have found a mate. Have you seen her mate? Leave it as is, don't screen the shed. I don't think Magpies will be a problem yet. Let nature be nature, although we can prevent problems but for now we will just wait till her eggs hatch. If you are going to set a tray, nail the tray on top of a stick on the ground, then once those babys hatched, once in a while put a few mealworm on the tray, you don't want too much, just a few, enough to share for all the babys, you don't want to attract too much attention from other birds, only her and her mate. Get a tray that the mealworm can't crawl out. Set the tray where your stroller is at. We can see her pick the mealworm out.

[@backyardnature101]

@@hokage_minato_4 I am not sure if I it is only she or her mate is also there. Perhaps she is alone. Thanks for the details about the tray. I will put it some somewhere at the sight of the camera. Not sure if I will find meal worms but I will put up something what I find in the garden. Perhaps earth worms.

[@hokage_minato_4]

@@backyardnature101 Yeah anything that is edible for them works. Mealworm is just an example. Also they would like a bird bath or hanger, something that just contains water. Once they see it and get familiar with it, they'll use it. Then hopefully we can get a glimpse of her mate.

[@beverlyarcher3744]

@@backyardnature101 if not feeders there's some that prevent squirrels from eating from them

[@Rai2M]

loved to see her finally sat in the nest like nothing happened ))

[@koreanature]

Wow, My best friend, Thank you for your hard work in making the video. I enjoyed the good video. Have a happy day.

[@typhoon1oon]

🤨 hard work by placing a camera in front of it

[@backyardnature101]

Yes, it was actually difficult. But in this case the camera was there from the last year and I only needed to turn it on. Last year it was indeed a challenge to mount it.

[@FlyBoyKhi]

This did _not_ end the way I thought it would lol

[@backyardnature101]

The cat is rather peaceful :) and perhaps well fed at home

[@roberthill1586]

The cat was like 'yeah, yeah...gonna have fun tonight'

[@backyardnature101]

Well, actually the cat finally had some fun with the second clutch :) it played with the eggs and crashed one.

[@GOREKOREx]

The cat really stayed there and thought about it. 😭☠️

[@SeriousDragonify]

Where's this? They're known to be only in Europe and Asia.

[@mmhmmmyearight7183]

All the hard work

[@backyardnature101]

The bird actually succeeded with the second clutch. So the hard work pays off at some point :D

[@Degan1000]

How cold was it on day 6? I know in PA we can still get some cold days in early May.

[@backyardnature101]

Ok. Just checked in the weather archive for that day. At night it was as low as 9 C which is about 48 F. The pick during the day was around 15 C which is 59 F. To me seems quite low especially if mother had to leave chicks for a while and that they really need some warmth at that age.

[@wavemaker2077]

Wow, the mother just missed a few feeding sessions and the chicks died right away. Maybe you should help the mother bird by providing some worms near the nest.

[@PumpkinHoard]

Makes sense. Chicks grow at an astounding rate. Almost all that they consume is going towards growth rather than just sustaining bodily functions like an adult bird, thus they need regular food or they starve.

[@backyardnature101]

Some people wrote that food could be not the only reason for the chicks to die, e.g. colder temperature also could play a role.

[@wavemaker2077]

@@backyardnature101 The more reason that the mother should be helped with food so that the mother can stay in the nest longer. The mother will just stay in the nest if the chicks are already well fed.

[@backyardnature101]

@@wavemaker2077 Agree. In fact, during the second nesting attempt of this blackbird, I had mealworms ready. But I was on standby in case there will be an issue with the food again. Though this time there was one chick only and it was July, so perhaps more food. The mother managed without my help all the way through. Everything went well.

[@growmiezhomiez8760]

Once she had finished burying the last dead baby bird, momma knew what she had to do…

[@backyardnature101]

Well, she tried one more time and succeeded actually first time in two years

[@kenanderson9331]

Wow mum went from hero to zero fast.......

[@backyardnature101]

But with the second clutch mom recovered and succeeded with one chick from the clutch. First time in two years as far as I followed her

[@Jon-jt9fy]

Could possibly always go to the feed store and get worms and bait and such for fishing..just leave it near the nest for the mom to find..or hell..if the mom is being distant..feed them yourself. Bird species are all different in ways, but I live around a LOT of sparrows. They're good moms but highly cautious. Baby bird dropped out of a nest one day and I found it, managed to capture it and set it inside an empty fish tank because I could not get to the nest. Set the area up for safety and comfort..and the first time I went out to feed it..the mom was already there in the fish-tank nest I made, with her baby, feeding it. I monitored, but I never had to feed it.

[@backyardnature101]

Thanks for the suggestions and sharing your experience. During the second nesting attempt I did prepare worms and was monitoring camera more often. First time I did not even monitor it daily. But this time I never needed to intervene with food. There was plenty of food as it happened in July. Interesting experience you had with sparrow chick. Did you place the fish tank relatively close to the nest? Did this baby sparrow manage to fledge successfully? How many days approximately remote feeding by mom continued?

[@TheFancyClown]

I thought the Cat would've ate them or something, because of the thumbnail.

[@lannyhsu708]

Agree w comments that mortality rate is pretty high thus songbirds often try to have more than one brood a season. That being said, it does seem like a very short period of time for all chicks to die of starvation. If the weaker start to die, then the strongest would get more of the incoming food. (and according to the video, food was still being brought in). Maybe other factors involved?

[@backyardnature101]

Perhaps some other reasons play in too, but surely they were fed so little comparing to the previous days and the bird was gone for long and coming without food many times… There was no frost for sure.

[@lelandsteward5137]

So... from watching this video 📹... what could the Mother have done differently... what was she doing wrong to make the babies not survive? 🤔

[@backyardnature101]

It is not really clear what is the reason for the chicks to die. The only obvious one on the surface is that she was almost not bringing food to the chicks the last day. Was it the reason for them to die? I am not sure. Perhaps there were other factors. Not knowing the reason of death difficult to say what could be done differently.

[@boneore3478]

When did the smallest die?

[@backyardnature101]

Not sure when exactly as I did not manage to find on the footage the moment when the bird pulled its corpse away.

[@paulrerrie75]

Perhaps the slug had been poisoned.

[@backyardnature101]

Can’t exclude that. But more included to the lack of food at the day. As I read the chicks cannot live without food for more than 10 hours. But could not find details on how the time differ depending on the age of the chicks.

[@MrVfmen]

2:26 아니 고양이 .... 잘생겼슴

[@SuperMathMan]

Wondering why the cat didn't eat the chicks ? Also wondering why the mother didn't eat the chicks like a lot of other animal species would ?

[@CLOWNBOT00]

When there's too much activity near the nest, they won't go back. I assume you had no contact with the nest and it looks like a single parent situation, so her mate might've been hunted by another larger bird or something and left her with a difficult task. If you notice this right away and as someone mentioned already, leave some mealworms and/or something nearby she'll see. Also, your cat's presence might've halted her from going back as she sees it as a predator unlike how we see it as a pet.

[@backyardnature101]

Thanks for suggestion. This time I will monitor if she is alone. Hopefully, she will manage to get the chicks… it is so difficult times for this bird as it feels with all the obstacles she goes through when nesting.

[@CLOWNBOT00]

@@backyardnature101 I pay attention to Robin's (mostly) and Mockingbirds as they're prominent to my area. Blackbirds show up in families here when bopping around for food, so they don't nest near me. In other words, this is rare for me to see. Thank you for sharing this.

[@beverlyarcher3744]

@@backyardnature101 also buy some bird feeders it would help with her getting food to them quicker we have some and the birds come when they can't find bugs it's even fun to watch the babies come and beg at the feeders for their parents to feed them till they get confidence enough to get it themselves

[@agatareiter7012]

@@beverlyarcher3744 +2

[@bakalito4601]

just leave the alone

[@beverlyarcher3744]

And this is why I buy food so poor babies don't go hungry

[@backyardnature101]

Did not get it fully. Could you please elaborate on the bird flu part?

[@pelufaz8435]

4:44 what was that? lol

[@backyardnature101]

It was the bird breaking the egg shell with the beak assisting the chick in hatching :)

[@laplumeebouriffee4037]

Elle jette les petits crevés et se met dans le nid avec autant d'émotions que si elle avait sorti la poubelle.

[@scrappinnanny5836]

Pesticide poisoning?

[@Endymion766]

life is hard

[@MrStinkels]

It s bruuutaaaal

[@backyardnature101]

On the positive note this bird succeed with the another clutch during July so it ended well for this bird. One chick fledged

[@alejandrosoto1336]

también podría haber sido que la madre le trago algún alimento contaminado, suele pasar.

[@boneore3478]

Surprised that cat didn’t eat them.

[@backyardnature101]

Well, it was not the most convenient position to get to them. Later with the second clutch the cat figured out how to climb onto the ledge and crashed an egg

[@maddy8855]

Throw that cat out! Who's cat is it anyway?! Smh.

[@paksimaniakebumen3853]

Kasihaaan dari empat telur menetas tidak ada yang lolos sampai dewasa

[@suhailimuhammad2848]

Knapa itu bang kok mati anaknya, klaparan kah?

[@nancypsenicka7826]

That’s actually sad

[@Pango5697]

I don’t get it. These chicks did not die of starvation. Why did they all die off?

[@alejandrovictoralejogomez7360]

Tal ves por el frio

[@backyardnature101]

Difficult to say for sure, but it seemed to me the most obvious. Why do you not think they died of starvation?

[@backyardnature101]

There was no frost as such at that time. But can’t say if that day was a little colder.

[@Pango5697]

@@backyardnature101 It looked like they were getting fed pretty frequently

[@raiggazirkuleirtt9706]

Alguien sabe por que murieron?

[@Sofia-te4dp]

La mamá no los alimentó lo suficiente

[@janajamer734]

Maybe this is a first time being a mama?

[@backyardnature101]

I do not think it is a first time parenthood for this bird. I think it tried several times last year too on the same spot.

[@bayoen9819]

Wtf happened to the fourth chick?

[@backyardnature101]

I think it died. But I could not find on the footage the moment she pulled the dead body out.

[@hannakrzyska3963]

Ooo 😥

[@backyardnature101]

No worries, the mother bird succeeded with another attempt in July. One chick fledged.

[@DCmcshiels]

The Blue Jays ate the baby Robins out of the nest on our second story window ledge...then 2 days later a Raccoon ate the Blue Jay babies.

[@rosarivera1269]

So sad

[@laplumeebouriffee4037]

The adult doesn't seem gifted at bringing the right size to feed those birds.

[@lilianarodriguez1928]

Why would she stop feeding them or slow feeding them on day 5 or 6? She was easily finding food since their birth so I don’t understand what this means. Did she mean to kill them? Because it did not seem food was scarce for her to find.

[@backyardnature101]

Thanks for your comment. I actually have no idea why she stops feeding them and I am puzzled just like you are. The cat came on day 4 and she still continued feeding them on day 4 and 5. She stopped feeding them in the morning of day 6. That being said she still fed them during the night from day 5 to 6. As I read about black birds, there big losses on the way and only 30-40% of nests produce fledging chicks. But I do not have the answer to why she stopped feeding.

[@backyardnature101]

Well, let’s see what will come out this time. As I write, she builds a nest one more time. Hopefully, all goes well this time around.

[@wildgeralt]

I hope it will.

[@SerpentKiss11]

Nature isn't perfect. Also, sometimes when a parent animal senses a baby is weak or sick, sadly they will sometimes not bother caring for them or will even sometimes kill/eat them.

[@midnightnavy6061]

雛突然何処に行った❓🐦

[@erhanozturk4139]

2:55

[@bluebirdsnature5551]

Mother feed baby every time

[@17neyko98]

If you hear to much hardstyle 44:44

[@tonecamp565]

Bird like F dem kids 😥🤦🏽‍♂️

[@codeblaksjalvarez8806]

No entiendo como pudieron morir sus bb si los atendía bien y no se vio en el vídeo algún ataque alguien q me explique

[@175hnb175]

Como lo explica el usuario "Hokage_Minato_4 Loft": La posibilidad de no contar con el padre (quien pudo haber muerto días antes que los bebés nacieran, tal vez fue cazado por un animal) hizo que la madre pusiera el doble de esfuerzo en alimentar a sus 4 crías, algo que con el pasar de los días la agotó y al llegar el 6.° ella no pudo cumplir con la cuota de comida desde temprano y ya, cuando ella había recuperado energía, los polluelos estaban muy cansados para pedir alimento hasta que finalmente murieron de hambre. Otra opción es que el 6.° día la comida escaseara cerca del nido y la mirla no podía hacer nada más que seguir buscando, lejos de este, hasta que encontrara alimento, algo que no pasó y concluyó con el fallecimiento de los polluelos.

[@user-mb8cc2yc9i]

Where is the 👨 👨‍👩‍👧

[@marlymaquealopes1693]

Que amor é esse tão lindo parabéns a m é m parabéns mamãe

[@micheleeurope]

🤦

[@neonlight8156]

Poop babies ! I feel so bad as all died ! Why the parent stoped feeding them suddenly y maybe she was tired dinot know what it was .nature is so beautiful but brutal at times

[@esengomamonga9292]

Lack of food resources maybe...

[@backyardnature101]

The mother bird succeeded with the second nesting attempt. The balance is recovered so to speak :)

[@pedro.3800]

poison?

[@elbier9x]

skill issue from the mother

[@donbaxley5530]

I do not believe these were the same birds that you think were parents? I was raised on a farm and saw nests all the time. Never saw a blackbird pull dead babies out of a nest or peck the inside of the babies throats. Predator birds like starlings do!

[@backyardnature101]

I have not so much experience as you are but in this footage I do believe that it is the same mother bird. As I saw all motion events manually. But surely difficult to say 100%

[@rehanurrehman0079]

And Cat??? 🤔

[@backyardnature101]

And cat showed up one more time during second nesting attempt and destroyed one egg

[@maddy8855]

@@backyardnature101 Terrible! Who's cat is it anyway?! Smh 👎

[@shibe_rang]

I came for the cat .... Disappointed

[@backyardnature101]

:) cat showed up another time to play with eggs during the second nesting attempt

[@chanshunlamandprogun911u-5yeah]

6 is death chick

[@user-qh9jc9jy5k]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@ejkalegal3145]

This bird really is stupid, even for a bird.

[@setsunafseiei1295]

Dead chicks is the best chick❤❤❤

[@ezstreete]

Squab kabobs!!!

[@gladiador2022]

WTF

[@chanshunlamandprogun911u-5yeah]

And I hate the strong three

[@Butterstix2014]

So glad the cat didn’t do anything. People really need to keep them inside. They can do a lot of harm to the bird population and stuff.

[@tommymorgan3749]

birds are rotten! I had a family of sparrows in my birdhouse, I went out one day and saw cotton hanging out of the house, I pulled it out and found out the babies were crushed to death with all the debris inside but this was really bad! She sees the dead baby birds and just throws them out of the nest not even mourning the loss of her babies what a jerk!

[@bekah9651]

as a legally licensed wildlife rehabber, i take in and successfully raise, rehabilitate, and release up to 20 nestling to fledgling baby birds each spring and summer. robins and blackbirds are extremely resilient, shame on you for not contacting a local wildlife rehabber. we are all listed on our states DNR/FISH&GAME's online pages, we are typically listed by our names, numbers, counties, and the species we primarily work with. shame on you. with how song bird populations are already being absolutely decimated by domestic cats, pesticides, and human interference as it is, shame on you for not contacting a rehabber once you knew there was trouble.

[@zairadile]

Offer information, not insults.

[@GarrisIiari]

Yeah, why wouldn't someone contact as friendly and judgment free person as you are? Goodness, I didn't know your position existed myself. And trouble came pretty fast! Hold the judgment.

[@MAstaKFC]

Wow what a way to respectfully inform someone of better options. Maybe that's why you only work with wildlife.

[@IGot7RevtinyArmyStayOnceBlink]

Judging by the comments under your comment it’s sad you have to baby adult people who have enough common sense to record a video of baby birds dying to upload to KZbin but need their hand held to do a quick google search to find who to contact to save the birds. Crazy how we pick and choose what’s easy to do while simultaneously policing your tone because you said “shame on them”. It is fully shame on them. It’s sad they allowed this to happen and all those defending them are just as bad.

[@zairadile]

@@IGot7RevtinyArmyStayOnceBlink To you as well, offer *information,* not insults.

[@tania-apsu46896]

very very bad camera angle