Can I give my bird maple branches?

[Vilatus]

Hi everyone,

I’m just wondering if it would be appropriate to give my budgie some maple branches. The tree needs a trimming and I thought he might like them. We don’t use any pesticides on it, it gets cinnamon sprinkled at its base to ward off ants.


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[noodles123]

Depends on the type of maple. Some are safe and some are not. You also will want to bake it to kill off parasites, and strip the outer bark to remove the risk of fungi. Maples can carry a dangerous fungus on the bark...not to mention insects etc (hence baking and removing the bark).

I know this because I collected some maple branches for my bird and did a ton of research during that time lol! I know certain maple varieties are toxic, while some are not.
Sugar maples are safe if you handle the wood properly.

 

[Vilatus]

Depends on the type of maple. Some are safe and some are not. You also will want to bake it to kill off parasites, and strip the outer bark to remove the risk of fungi. Maples can carry a dangerous fungus on the bark...not to mention insects etc.

I think it’s a Sugar Maple. Green leaves, not a red. So if I wash, strip the bark, and bake it, it should be safe? As well of course thoroughly check it for any crawlers.

Edit: It’s a silver maple!


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[noodles123]

Google the leaf varieties-- if you post a picture of the leaf I can help you ID it (it's more about shape than color). If it's not by a road that has run-off and if you bake it and strip bark, it's likely fine (like you said, you didn't use chemicals on it). Some people leave bark on tree branches, but it's a maple fungus that makes this riskier w/regard to maples specifically.

 

[Vilatus]

Pretty sure it’s a silver maple. It has a fungus, all the trees here do the past few years, but if I take all the precautions it should be just fine I assume???


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[noodles123]

Pretty sure it’s a silver maple. It has a fungus, all the trees here do the past few years, but if I take all the precautions it should be just fine I assume???


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I am also wondering what disease it has, due to the spots on the leaves. I would have to research that further, as I am not sure if bacterial diseases or viruses can harm birds if the tree is infected.

EDIT---May not be a sugar maple..hold on.,...edges look too rough

Can you post a better closeup of the edges on the leaves?

 

[Vilatus]

Pretty sure it’s a silver maple. It has a fungus, all the trees here do the past few years, but if I take all the precautions it should be just fine I assume???


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It looks like a sugar/acer maple, but they are the variety that can harbor that fungus on the bark.
I am also wondering what disease it has, due to the spots on the leaves. I would have to research that further, as I am not sure if bacterial diseases or viruses can harm birds if the tree is infected.

From what I understand it’s called tar spot. It’s not harmful to the tree really, just gross looking. But yeah, if you don’t think it’s something I can potentially kill by proper washing and stripping I definitely won’t be giving anything to my baby.


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[Vilatus]

Pretty sure it’s a silver maple. It has a fungus, all the trees here do the past few years, but if I take all the precautions it should be just fine I assume???


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

It kind of looks like a sugar/acer maple, but they are the variety that can harbor that fungus on the bark.
I am also wondering what disease it has, due to the spots on the leaves. I would have to research that further, as I am not sure if bacterial diseases or viruses can harm birds if the tree is infected.

EDIT---May not be a sugar maple..hold on.,...

Can you post a better closeup of the edges on the leaves?

Here’s another picture of some clean leaves!


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[noodles123]

It may be a red maple (acer rubrum)...not sure if they are safe or not. The leaves can apparently poison horses.

I could be wrong in terms of identification-- I do not think it is a sugar maple but it could be something else besides the red maple (that's just a guess based on what I found)..Research before giving it to the bird-- see if you can get a confirmation ID-- university/state extension may be able to help you ID the tree based on the leaf.

 

[Vilatus]

It may be a red maple...not sure if they are safe or not.

It’s never red, the leaves often fall off before they get red in the autumn. If that helps.


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[noodles123]

Red maples don't always look red. Sugar maples usually have smoother edges.

 

[Vilatus]

Red maples don't always look red. Sugar maples usually have smoother edges.

Gotcha. Thank you for your help so far!


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[noodles123]

This is a sugar maple leaf:

 

[Vilatus]

I have a baby of this tree with nicer leaves.


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[noodles123]

I'd email your extension office and see what they say- you can send them the adult and baby leaves and ask for help with an ID. From there, I would research toxicity. Mine was a sugar maple, so I knew it was safe (with bark removed) but I do remember that some types were not.

 

[Vilatus]

I'd email your extension office and see what they say- you can send them the adult and baby leaves and ask for help with an ID. From there, I would research toxicity. Mine was a sugar maple, so I knew it was safe (with bark removed) but I do remember that some types were not.

Ok, I’ll try that. Sorry for the run around, the tree is ancient and was here well before us. I appreciate your help.


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[noodles123]

In the meantime though, bring the branches into a place where they will be away from insects-- they start breaking down fast and you don't want these nasty wood-eating wasps to take it over.

 

[noodles123]

Could also be a silver maple..although that last picture makes me think it might not be. I'm thinking red maple.

 

[noodles123]

Here's another red maple leaf set that looks different from the first--again, just a guess...consult extension too:

and another

 

[Vilatus]

In the meantime though, bring the branches into a place where they will be away from insects-- they start breaking down fast and you don't want these nasty wood-eating wasps to take it over.

I think for now I’m just going to recycle the branches. It’s a huge tree so there’s plenty to go around. I’m really unsure about what it is right now and don’t have anywhere to store them.


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