From squirrels to swallows, Idahoans are surrounded by an abundance of outdoor wildlife. That doesn’t change during the Fourth of July weekend.
The Fourth of July is Friday and if you’re a pet owner, you might be preparing for an anxious dog or canary. But birds and mammals outside the house are also affected.
Jennifer Rockwell is the director of Ruth Melichar Bird Center. It cares for up to 3,000 wild birds a year. She said the Fourth of July happens in the middle of nesting season.
There's possibilities of abandoning nests from the loud bangs and bright flashes. Also, collisions can happen with wild birds, because now they're being displaced from the loud bangs and the bright lights,” Rockwell said.
To avoid disorienting the birds and disrupting nesting, Rockwell recommends using ground-based fireworks.
Airborn fireworks are banned in Idaho. County commissioners recently banned the use of any fireworks in a 800-square-mile unincorporated stretch of land outside Ada County, citing severe wildfire risk.
Rockwell said it’s important to clean up firework debris. Fragments of firecrackers and other combustibles can be picked up by birds mistaking them for food.
“They can easily swallow a little firecracker and then there's toxicity that is also, you know, going inside the bird's body.”
There are currently 200 birds in the Bird Center’s care. It’s staffed to feed baby every 30 minutes for 12 hours a day.
