When I pulled onto the shoulder, I could see the baby female still sitting there and the adults, now perched in the nearby bushes. I got out of my car, intending to pick up the baby and place it near the bushes off the roadway. But when I got to the baby, to my dismay, I found that the baby's left eye was gone and a large blob of blood was where its eye used to be. The poor bird was clearly stunned and disoriented, but otherwise uninjured. Not knowing what else I could do for it, I went ahead and carried the bird about 15 feet off the shoulder toward the bushes where I had spotted the adults; but I don't see how this baby was going to have any chance at survival with just one eye. It could barely stand up when I placed it on the grass. It seemed to be in complete shock.
Here's my question: Many years ago, I found a flock of Starlings attacking a Sparrow on the patio outside my home. They had actually formed a circle around the Sparrow, which one Starling had in it's grip, and several began to peck at the Sparrow's head/eye area! I ran outside and chased the rotten Starlings off---fortunately the sparrow was O.K. and flew away. (I know, I know---it's debatable which is worse, Sparrows or Starlings; but I couldn't just stand by and watch this brutality!) Anyway, back to my question. Because I witnessed this eye-pecking routine by birds in the past, I wondered if those adult Cardinals had been pecking at this poor baby Cardinal's eye when I first drove by, or perhaps they were its parents and some other bird had gotten to the baby and pecked its eye out. At least I can't imagine how else the baby Cardinal's eye was gone, with fresh blood ozing from the empty socket! What does anyone think or know about this eye-pecking behavior? I Googled it and found nothing.
