Mishkat al-Masabih 2377
‘Amir ar-Ram said:
While we were with him, meaning with the Prophet, a man came forward wearing a garment and carrying something wrapped up in his hand. He said, “Messenger of God, I passed by a thicket of trees in which I heard the chirping of young birds, so I took them and put them in my garment. Their mother came and flew round over my head, so I uncovered them to let her see them, and when she alighted on them I wrapped them all up in my garment, and these are what I have with me.” He gave command to put them down, and I did so,* but their mother would not leave them, whereupon God’s messenger said, “Do you wonder at the pity of the young birds’ mother for her young? By Him who sent me with the truth, God shows more pity towards His servants than the mother of young birds shows to her young. Take them back and put them where you got them, their mother being with them.” So he took them back. 
*The use of the first person seems strange here. The command was given to the man who was holding the bundle, and so one would have expected "and he did so." This is not the kind of sentence in which the change of person frequently used in Arabic style seems natural. As the text stands it would seem that ‘Amir took the bundle from the man and laid it down.

Abu Dawud transmitted it.
وَعَنْ عَامِرٍ الرَّامِ قَالَ: بَيْنَا نَحْنُ عِنْدَهُ يَعْنِي عِنْدَ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِذْ أَقْبَلَ رَجُلٌ عَلَيْهِ كِسَاءٌ وَفِي يَدِهِ شَيْءٌ قَدِ الْتَفَّ عَلَيْهِ فَقَالَ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ مَرَرْتُ بَغِيضَةِ شَجَرٍ فَسَمِعْتُ فِيهَا أَصْوَاتَ فِرَاخِ طَائِرٍ فَأَخَذْتُهُنَّ فَوَضَعْتُهُنَّ فِي كِسَائِي فَجَاءَتْ أُمُّهُنَّ فَاسْتَدَارَتْ عَلَى رَأْسِي فَكَشَفْتُ لَهَا عَنْهُنَّ فَوَقَعَتْ عَلَيْهِنَّ فَلَفَفْتُهُنَّ بِكِسَائِي فَهُنَّ أُولَاءِ مَعِي قَالَ: «ضَعْهُنَّ» فَوَضَعْتُهُنَّ وَأَبَتْ أُمُّهُنَّ إِلَّا لُزُومَهُنَّ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: 
" أتعجبون لرحم أم الْفِرَاخ فراخها؟ فو الَّذِي بَعَثَنِي بِالْحَقِّ: لَلَّهُ أَرْحَمُ بِعِبَادِهِ مِنْ أُمِّ الْفِرَاخ بِفِرَاخِهَا ارْجِعْ بِهِنَّ حَتَّى تَضَعَهُنَّ مِنْ حَيْثُ أَخَذْتَهُنَّ وَأُمُّهُنَّ مَعَهُنَّ ". فَرَجَعَ بِهِنَّ. رَوَاهُ أَبُو دَاوُد