Elissa Ruth Wolfson - Audubon Birding Adventures for Kids: Activities and Ideas for Watching, Feeding, and Housing Our Feathered Friends

This Red-tailed Hawk had fed on a deer carcass containing lead bullet shards. Nicknamed Ledbelly, he required months of rehabilitation for lead poisoning at Cornells Swanson Wildlife Health Center in Ithaca, New York.

Think about plastic items we often use once and then throw away: cups, straws, utensils, grocery bags, and more. Like all plastics, single-use plastic lasts for centuries in the environment. Most ends up in the ocean. Meanwhile, discarded six-pack rings and fishing line can strangle birds. And eating plastic bits can starve or hurt them. You can help:

Reduce, reuse, recycle, or refuse single-use plastics whenever you can.

Use cloth grocery bags, reusable water bottles, and metal mugs and utensils.

Never release balloons outdoors.

Tell others about the dangers of plastics; and participate in beach and roadside clean-ups.

Millions of birds die every year from crashing into windows. They cant tell the difference between reflected sky and real sky. Screened windows are safestbirds bounce off! Bird feeders should be placed either less than 3' (1 m) or more than 30' (9 m) away from windows. Another remedy: Apply tempera paint or non-transparent tape in vertical stripes to outside window surfaces (" [3 mm] wide, and less than 4" [10 cm] apart). For bird tape and other solutions, visit abcbirds.org/get-involved/bird-smart-glass.

Most birds migrate by night, using the moon and stars to navigate. Flying over bright city lights confuses them. An estimated billion migrating birds die each year from crashing into buildings. Lights Out programs ask building managers to turn off unnecessary lights during migration, saving birdsand energy costs, too. Visit www.audubon.org/conservation/project/lights-out.

Outdoor cats kill an estimated 2.4 billionor one in tennative U.S. birds each year. Nesting and migratory birds are most at risk. Bird groups and humane societies alike recommend keeping cats indoors, both for the birds safety and the cats well-being. Indoor cats avoid harmful outdoor threats such as fleas, ticks, rabies, cat fights, poisonous chemicals, aggressive dogs and other predators, and especially cars. If you give your cats toys, catnip, places to climb and scratch, clean litter boxes, and lots of attention, they can live long, happy lives indoors.

But if your cat is as eager to go out as you are to keep her in, an outdoor enclosure, or catio, can be a good compromise. An enclosure can be as simple as a screened-in porch. Add tree branches, ladders, hanging toys, perching ledges, boxes to hide in, and a tarp over the roof for sun and rain protection. There cats can safely watch squirrels, sleep in the sun, and stalk bugs that make the mistake of wandering in! Easy-to-build cat enclosure kits are available from places such as C & D Pet Products (www.cdpets.com) and Cats on Deck (www.catsondeck.com).

Cats live longer, safer lives indoorsand the birds are safer too!

HELPING INJURED BIRDS

1. Ask an adult for help before approaching an injured bird.

2. Prepare a rescue box. Punch some air holes on top and line it with a blanket or towel. Have another towel or cloth ready. Even a jacket will do!

3. Put on gloves if available. Approach the bird slowly and quietly. If the bird remains still, it may be sick, injured, or stunned from hitting a window. Or it may be a fledgling too young to flyif so, leave it alone (see #6).

Another person in front of an injured bird can help distract it. Approaching from the rear, put the towel over the bird. Keeping the wings folded against the birds body, gently lift it up and place it in the lined box. Remove the covering towel. Put it over the closed box to block the light.

4. If you suspect a window strike, place the boxed bird in a warm, dark, quiet place to recover. If you hear movement within an hour or two, the stunned bird may be ready to fly. Open the box outside and say goodbye! If the bird still cannot fly, see #5.