Texas Family Finds Baby Bird and Uses Warm Tortilla to Protect the Chick Until Rescuers Arrive

An animal-loving family used what they had on hand to help a wild baby bird.

The Wild West Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Amarillo, Texas, recounted their encounter with the quick-thinking crew on Facebook.

According to the center's July 14 post, Wild West Wildlife received a call the same day "about a possible orphaned barn owl."

The caller told the wildlife rehabber who answered the phone that their family found a "baby bird on the ground without any parents nearby" while swimming and barbequing.

"Rehabber Christy managed the call and inquired if they had already placed it in a box, to which they responded, 'We wrapped him in a warm tortilla,'" the center wrote about what happened next.

The post added that the family who called was working with the materials they had available.

"Concerned about the baby feeling cold, the mother asked for a tortilla to be warmed up on the grill to provide heat for it," Wild West Wildlife wrote on social media.

The family's unconventional approach to protecting the hatchling with a tortilla was "effective," according to Wild West Wildlife, which added on Facebook that the baby bird was warm and safe when its rescuer arrived.

The wildlife rescuer who retrieved the bird from the family determined that the hatchling was a Mississippi kite. The baby bird is now recovering -

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at Wild West Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, which is raising money to cover the supplies needed for the animal's care, including several weeks' worth of insects and frozen mice.

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In a July 16 Facebook update, Wild West Wildlife shared that staffers have named the female Mississippi kite chick Taquito.

"The small Mississippi Kite, affectionately named "Taquito," has adapted well after being caught with a flour tortilla. She is maintaining a healthy appetite and has become quite popular online. She will be under our care for approximately two months," the wildlife rehab center wrote alongside a video of the bird.

The Wild West Wildlife Rehabilitation Center's website offers several tips for those who find wild animals in need. According to the site, a person who sees a wild animal that needs help should contact a wildlife rescue, place the critter in a carrier or box with ventilation if possible, and keep the animal in a dark, quiet place until they can be transported to a rescue center.

To learn more about wildlife rehab and to donate to Wild West Wildlife Rehabilitation Center's work, visit the rehab center's website.

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