Hi, this little cutie has appeared in my garden today. He's / she's not going far, just between my niger and my sunflower seed feeders (about 7m apart) and resting a lot on my fence. He is not afraid of me and allowed me to get very close (I wanted to check on him - he did fly but not far). He is eating well but he's also resting and sleeping for long periods on my fence and in other exposed places and seems quite vulnerable.
My question is; do you think he is fully fledged or has fallen from a nest? There's no sign of a parent around but everytime a goldfinch lands nearby he is fluttering like mad as if he wants to be fed. Also, his primary and secondary feathers look very short to me but I've never been able to get close to a baby bird before so maybe that's normal.
I enclose a photo of him. Thanks in advance for your help.
PS I have rigged up a tiny water bowl for him high up so he doesn't have to try to land low on our bird baths, and will keep the feeders filled and keep an eye on him from a safe distance in case Mum / Dad do appear.