SLOW TO LEAVE: Hit by a car on Manson Avenue by the old bird sanctuary off MacGregor Avenue in Powell River, many cars drove right over this fox sparrow, until one driver actually noticed it and stopped. She then had to stop traffic to rescue the bird from the middle of the road. It was stunned but had no wing damage.
Beginning its recovery at Powell River Orphaned Wildlife Society, in the new downstairs facility at PROWLS president Merrilee Prior’s home, the bird was first in a small cage for four days to rest and recoup. Then it moved into a small flight cage for exercise and finally into the larger flight cage outside.
Usually keen to escape, this one was rather sedate, possibly due to the carefully selected good eats and cool weather. The escape flap was opened again the next day and it was on its way.
Fox sparrows prefer feeding on the ground, kicking up a good spray of leaf litter in dense thickets. Berry bushes and brush piles are an excellent way to provide protected places for these birds to forage and nest, which they prefer to do on the ground.
Contributed photo
