Rickie Lee Jones Helps Birds at Home

BirdNote^®
Rickie Lee Jones Helps Birds at Home
Written by Ariana Remmel

This is BirdNote.

Musician Rickie Lee Jones was taking a walk when she found a bird in need.

         [House Sparrows for ambi]

Rickie Lee Jones: It was a really hot day and it just gave up. It was on in the dirt by the railroad tracks and it didn't move when I came.

She gently relocated the little bird to a quiet spot that was dark and cool. Thankfully, the bird recovered enough to fly off on its own.

Rickie Lee Jones: And I think that made me go, “These animals need water and if they need water, they need food.”

         [New ambi of backyard birds like Mourning Doves or Cardinals]

Rickie started putting out water and feeders for her neighborhood birds. At her home in New Orleans, she’s become popular with the local cardinals, doves, and even the occasional hawk. They’ve developed a bit of a rapport.

         [American Crow]

Rickie Lee Jones: I started talking to crows a couple years ago. Crows are kind of my bird now, and the first crow to call back was a white wing crow. And I could recognize her 'cause the rest just looked the same. But she would come with her white wing and eat the peanuts. And so we got this little relationship going.

The experience has encouraged Rickie to find more ways to make her home a safe haven for birds.

Rickie Lee Jones: Every little bit helps.

Looking for actions you can take to protect birds? Start at our website, BirdNote.org. I’m Nick Bayard.

BirdNote is supported by Road Scholar, creating educational travel adventures for adults around the world. Learn more at Roadscholar.org/learning. 

### 
Senior Producer: Mark Bramhill
Producer: Sam Johnson
Managing Producer: Jazzi Johnson
Managing Producer: Ariana Remmel
Content Director: Jonese Franklin

Bird sounds provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. House Sparrow ML211312851 recorded by Jay McGowan; American Crow ML229089 recorded by Bob McGuire.
BirdNote’s theme was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.
© 2025 BirdNote January 2026
Narrator: Nick Bayard

ID# JonesRL-01-2025-01-01    JonesRL-01