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Table of Contents
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| A ten-minute walk along the San Francisco Bay in China Camp produced a plastic balloon, plastic packaging and plastic bag on the shore. Photo by David Taylor |
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Drought-tolerant wildlife gardens invite native bees, hummingbirds, and other wildlife. Photo by Marian Eschen
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Bicycle commuting provides exercise, reduces traffic and spares the air. More and more bicycle-friendly routes are being made available every year. Photo by JoLynn Taylor
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Look for places that wildlife might find attractive and seal them before there is a chance of trouble. Photo by JoLynn Taylor
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Sticky traps meant for mice and rats are indescriminate killers of birds and reptiles, too. They are inhumane for any species. Photo by Melanie Piazza
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Swainson's Hawks, like WildCare's Wildlife Ambassador, Hinton, are one of the many bird species affected by pesticide poisons on agricultural crops. To maintain their certification, organic farmers must use non-toxic means to control pests. Photo by JoLynn Taylor
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| These baby raccoons were trapped when a crawl space was sealed in June. Seal your home before this happens. Photo by Eric Mies |
WildCare's Top Ten Resolutions for Wildlife
Happy New Year! Along with your personal resolutions to maybe lose weight, get more exercise, stop smoking and drink less, WildCare would like you to consider making some resolutions that will help make the world a better place for wildlife as well as people. You're probably doing some of these things already... why not make a new resolution this year?
10. Resolve to recycle
Responsible recycling goes a long way toward preventing wildlife problems. To wild animals, much of what we discard is considered food. Compost food scraps and recycle paper, glass and plastics. Rinsing your cans of cat (and other) food (as the recycling services ask) removes the attractive smells and will go a long way to preventing raccoons and skunks from rummaging through your recycling buckets. Many plastics do not decompose naturally; plastic that ends up in the ocean can cause death and starvation to aquatic wildlife and long-term toxic changes to the oceans themselves. Recycle your medications, too. Flushing them down the toilet sends them into the water supply and can disrupt the reproductive cycles of fish and amphibians. For composting information visit gardenfortheenvironment.org. For more recycling information visit the Marin Recycling Center online.
9. Resolve to plant a wildlife garden
Enriching habitat for wildlife is healthy for the whole planet. Choose native plants instead of exotic ones to support native species of insects, birds and mammals. Leave some areas in your garden wild as well-- wood piles (when safe) and fallen leaves provide habitat too! For more resources for gardening with native plants in the San Francisco Bay Area visit the Marin Chapter of the California Native Plant Society.
8. Resolve to get on your bike
Bicycling is good for your heart and lungs, reduces traffic congestion, and keeps carbon dioxide from automobile exhaust out of the air. If you can't ride a bike to work, carpool or find other ways to reduce your consumption of petrochemicals. Visit the Marin County Bicycle Coalition for information on safe bike routes and classes in bicycle commuting.
7. Resolve to keep your structure in repair
Check your roof, air vents, crawl spaces and decks to look for openings that might provide access for opportunistic wildlife intrusions by rats, squirrels, skunks, opossums and raccoons. Be sure you do repairs before the spring baby season (starting for some species as early as February) when mother animals have already moved in to keep their babies safe until they are old enough to travel. For advice and low cost inspections, visit WildCare Solutions.
6. Resolve to treat wildlife humanely and the environment with respect
To keep toxic chemicals out of the environment, take rodenticides, pesticides and herbicides, which poison living things indiscriminately, to the proper chemical disposal facility. Don't use sticky glue traps that kill birds, mammals and reptiles inhumanely by a long, lingering death of dehydration and starvation.
5. Resolve to support organic producers
Your shopping list may be killing songbirds. Farmers who grow produce without the use of chemicals and petroleum-based fertilizers help the planet by keeping chemicals out of the environment. They have to work harder to follow responsible farming practices that are healthier for you, your children and the wildlife with which we share the planet. Learn more at marinorganic.org and marinfarmersmarkets.org.
4. Resolve to get to know your neighbors
Take a Saturday morning nature hike with WildCare's trained naturalists who can show you who and what the natural world around you has to offer. WildCare Family Adventures hikes are free to the public and start at 10:00am at the trailhead. They are offered in both English and Spanish. Click here for dates and times.
3. Resolve to clean your bird feeders monthly
Feeding wildlife creates unnaturally large populations that congregate around the feeding station. This offers the opportunity for diseases to spread through close contact, so feeders must always be kept sanitized. Better yet, resolve not to feed any wildlife at all! Click to read our April 2008 eNews article on why we recommend not feeding wildlife and here for additional information from the California Department of Fish and Game.
2. Resolve to think about your wild neighbors when you trim your trees or seal openings in your structure
Wild animals have babies in spring and summer, but sometimes also in fall. Birds and squirrels nest in trees, so look for nests before you cut. Raccoons, skunks and foxes look for dens in crawl spaces, under decks and in other areas of homes. Don't seal those areas if you think there might be babies inside. Contact our WildCare Solutions service for help to humanely deal with wildilfe problems.
1. Resolve to support WildCare's wildlife rehabilitation and nature education programs
Each year, WildCare admits nearly 4,000 animals to our wildlife hospital and educates more than 40,000 people of all ages on humane ways to live well with wildlife. Memberships support our complete cycle of programs:
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An easy trail leads to the top of Ring Mountain where treasures like the rare Mariposa Lily can be found in spring. Photo by Holly Manley
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On a WildCare Nature Guided Field trip to China Camp's Miwok Meadows, three small explorers discover the giant nest of a Dusky-footed Woodrat. Photo by JoLynn Taylor
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An ancient Miwok grinding stone on Ring Mountain. Photo by Holly Manley
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Terwilliger Nature Guides point out some of the Muir Wood's hidden features. Photo by Pamela Westfall Bochte
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Bullfrogs, crayfish and water spiders are some of the wild things children can learn about at Spring Lake. Photo by Janet Sinnicks
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Discover Marin's Natural Secrets
The high price of Marin real estate is no secret, and much of this value is based on the rich variety of plants and animals with which we share this beautiful place. The natural diversity we often take for granted is an important element in making Marin living so desirable. Isn't it time you discovered the riches found in your own back yard?
Through Terwilliger Nature Guided field trip programs with WildCare, school children are introduced to the flora and fauna of our area, some of which is found nowhere else in the world.
For adults who want to learn more, WildCare's Terwilliger Nature Guide training introduces four different easily accessible ecosystems right in our own back yard. Nature Guides learn the natural history of these sites along with teaching techniques to gently introduce them to school children.
Ring Mountain
Little known Ring Mountain is an easy walk from Paradise Drive in Corte Madera. Among its attractions is a Native American grinding site hundreds of years old. A gentle path to the top means nearly anyone can be a mountain climber!
Miwok Meadows in China Camp
This park of 1,640 acres includes an unusually large number of differing natural habitats -- woodland, meadow, riparian (stream or lake banks), salt marsh, forest, freshwater marsh and coastal scrub. Here you can discover a Turret Spider's nest, Rattlesnake Grass, Dusky-footed Woodrat nests, Tree Frogs, Madrone Trees and multitudes of wildflowers in spring.
Spring Lake
If your backyard is closer to Santa Rosa, Spring Lake offers three rich habitats -- oak woodlands, fresh-water marsh and lakeshore. Birds, mammals, plant life, and even rocks and reptiles are all here to experience.
Muir Woods/Muir Beach
Cool, shady redwood groves and wheelchair-accessible paths bring the world of the ancient redwood giants close to home at Muir Woods. Muir Beach is a rich Pacific Coast seashore habitat for hundreds of species of birds. It is a beachcomber's dream.
The opportunity to become a Nature Guide is open to everyone, and one sure way to get an education for yourself! Bring a friend and learn about the great outdoors!
Terwilliger Nature Guide Training
Our Terwilliger Nature Guide Training Orientation will be held on on January 9, 2010 (click to register) followed by our comprehensive Nature Guide training series starting on January 23, 2010.
This training, taught by experienced WildCare naturalists and expert guest lecturers, will provide a full 36 hours of instruction in teaching techniques that prepare you to share your love of nature with eager schoolchildren on outdoor hikes full of exploration and learning.
The training offers both study materials and field experiences for adult volunteers. Elizabeth Terwilliger's interactive approach to working with children is part of the training.
Terwilliger Nature Guides commit to three three-hour hikes per month during the school year. All hikes are scheduled in the mornings during the week.
Click here to register to attend the Terwilliger Nature Guide orientation on January 9, 2010.
Nature Guide Training begins indoors and Questions? Contact Anya Pamplona, Education Coordinator at 415-453-1000 x12 or anya@wildcarebayarea.org.
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Hospital Volunteers
Nearly 300 volunteers keep WildCare's patients clean, fed and medicated. They come from all walks of life, all ages and stages. In a public service agency as dependent on volunteer support as WildCare is, there is plenty of room for initiative. For those who enjoy the challenges and rewards that WildCare's hospital offers, there is nearly unlimited opportunity. Here's a look at some of the people that make WildCare a success.
Jeanine Richardson
WildCare's medical staff takes pride in the fact that we are a wildlife "teaching hospital." Volunteers who have worked regular shifts in the hospital often later elect to specialize in something that helps support animal care in new ways. Some specialize in a specific species, some in medical or behavioral areas, some even in managing new volunteers. Jeanine Richardson is one such specialist.
Every Thursday morning, Jeanine sets up shop in WildCare's med room and begins work on samples that require analysis under the microscope. Jeanine has made herself an expert in microbiology and she's someone we really rely on. If you want to know if you are looking at a tapeworm egg, or a coccidia oocyst, Jeanine is your go-to gal. In addition, every Thursday when she leaves her shift at 1pm, the med room has been cleaned and organized.
Lucy Burlingham
Lucy Burlingham has been a quiet presence at WildCare since 1995 when she began working a shift in the Birdroom where all new volunteers started in those days. Lucy likes learning new things, and over the years she's helped WildCare in lots of ways.
She began fostering baby raccoons her first year, but then she discovered squirrels, and never looked back. She's raised hundreds of squirrels herself, and as our Squirrel Foster Care Team leader, she matches groups of squirrels to each team member's capabilities and time schedule. Lucy trains new team members, scouts and arranges suitable release sites, installs release nest boxes, monitors the animals' development schedules, arranges babysitting and handles most medical cases personally.
Diana Manis
Oh boy! It's Thursday! Every day in WildCare's hospital is different, because each shift is staffed by different volunteers. Oh, the lucky Thursday people! Diana Manis has chosen a very personal and unique way to help support our mission. Calling on skills from her career as a caterer, Diana often brings food to feed the volunteers that feed the animals! Her always-delicious vegetarian offerings range from exotic creations with seaweed and Asian spices, to trendy Mediterranean tapas to good old macaroni and cheese.
Diana is an integral part of so many areas of WildCare. She is her Thursday Clinic shift supervisor, a nature guide, a foster care provider, a seasonal Wildlife Technician, a wildlife ambassador, and even a volunteer chef!
Anne Barker and Stephen Shaw
In an organization as dependent on volunteer support as WildCare, there is plenty of room for initiative. And initiative is what Stephen Shaw and Anne Barker bring to WildCare again and again.
With full-time jobs in the South Bay keeping them busy all week, the volunteer shift they work and supervise is Sunday morning. But their support of WildCare just starts there.
One of the first projects they tackled was our duckling brooders. Ducklings make a mess faster than any other species, and the previous system was difficult to clean. Steve designed an efficient system using inexpensive plastic boxes with mesh flooring to manage the mess.
When they joined the raccoon foster care team, Steve built a predator-proof raccoon cage to provide exploration time outdoors for weaning-age animals. To help recruit foster care volunteers, Anne designed a web page that outlines each species' requirements for volunteers.
Volunteering in WildCare's Wildlife Hospital
Orientations for adult volunteers (18 and older) will be held January 23 and 24, 2010 (please note: the January 23 orientation is full!) Click to register for the January 24 orientation now. Please note: these will be the ONLY orientations for adult hospital volunteers in 2010.
Wildlife Hospital volunteers commit to an extensive hands-on training program (a full 16 hours of instruction) and then sign up for a regular 4-hour shift each week in the wildlife clinic. A minimum commitment-- from February through the end of November-- is required. Our animal patients rely on our volunteers for most of their cleaning, feeding and care, so the commitment is significant, as are the rewards.
Click to register for one of the orientation dates. Questions? Contact Jessica Grace, Volunteer Coordinator at 415-453-1000 x21 or volunteer@wildcarebayarea.org.
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Striped Skunks are common in North America; you can tell individuals apart by the unique shape of the striped pattern.
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| Western Spotted Skunks are smaller and less common. While WildCare admits 15 - 25 Striped Skunks each year, only four Western Spotted Skunks have been admitted since 2000. Photos by JoLynn Taylor |
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Skunk patient under anaesthesia at WildCare. Photo by JoLynn Taylor
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| Their long claws are a good indication of the skunk's supreme ability to dig and burrow. Photo by JoLynn Taylor |
About that scent...
If cornered by a persistent attacker, the skunk will arch its back, raise its fur and stick its tail straight up into the air. This makes the skunk appear to be bigger and more ferocious.
Before it sprays, a skunk may also stamp its feet as a warning. As a last measure, the skunk will turn its face and tail toward the attacker, in a sort of U shape, and shoot streams of butyl merccaptan from glands on either side of its anal area. This fluid can burn the eyes and nose of the attacker and even cause nausea.
Skunk smell cannot be washed off with tomato juice, ammonia or gasoline. These just mask the odor. A suggested treatment for odor removal is:
1 quart 3% hydrogen peroxide
¼ cup of baking soda
1 teaspoon of liquid soap
The peroxide and baking soda neutralize the odor; the soap removes the oil that holds the smell. Be careful, though. This solution may bleach hair and other materials.
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When Love Is in the Air
January through March are the months when carnivores like bobcats, raccoons and skunks seek mates. Hearing the vocalizations that bobcats or raccoons make when they mate, you might think the animals are attempting to kill each other. Skunks, on the other hand, are more reserved with their vocalizations. They prefer perfume.
Male skunks begin to range widely at this time, often leaving their own territories in search of a mate. During this time, the males are very excitable and may spray more readily. Between these territorial disputes, males fighting and females spraying males they don’t approve of, a lot of skunk odor is generated in early spring. WildCare fields a lot of calls during this time from concerned homeowners who fear they are developing a skunk “problem.” They usually aren’t.
Odor is not always a reliable indicator of the presence or absence of skunks. Sometimes dogs, cats or other animals that have been sprayed by skunks move under houses and make owners mistakenly think skunks are present.
Identifying the Culprit
Skunks dig holes in lawns, golf courses and gardens, as do several other species of animal. Digging done by skunks normally appears as small, three- to four-inch cone-shaped holes or patches of upturned earth. Long claw marks may be visible.
Skunks hunt by scent and use their long front claws to dig up beetle grubs, earthworms, roots, and fungi in the soil and under dead leaves. Skunks don’t climb well, but they will eat fallen nuts, fruit and bird’s eggs, along with pet food and anything that smells good in the trash can after raccoons have tipped it over. Field and house mice are regular and important items in the skunk diet, particularly in winter.
Skunks become a “nuisance” when their burrowing and feeding habits conflict with humans. They may burrow under porches or buildings for shelter or for a place to have their young and keep them safe until the babies are able to travel.
Exclusion
Prevent skunks from denning under buildings by sealing off all foundation openings. Cover all openings with wire mesh, sheet metal, or concrete. Bury fencing 1 1/2 to 2 feet in areas skunks can access by digging. Seal all ground-level openings into poultry buildings and close doors at night. Use tight-fitting lids to keep skunks out of garbage cans.
Properly dispose of garbage or other food sources that will attract skunks. Debris such as lumber, fence posts and junk cars provide shelter. Skunks are often attracted to rodents, so rodent control may be the first step to solving a skunk problem.
Repellents
There are no registered repellents for skunks, but lights and sounds may provide temporary relief from skunk activity. Most mammals, including skunks, can sometimes be discouraged from entering enclosed areas with moth balls or moth flakes (naphthalene). To be affective, these need to be used in sufficient quantities and replaced often. Ammonia-soaked cloths may also repel skunks. Repellents are only a temporary measure. Permanent solutions require other methods.
If the smell of skunk is truly excessive and has become a problem, WildCare Solutions can help by conducting a home inspection. If a skunk or other animal has take up residence, we will humanely evict the nuisance animal, and then permanently seal up the entry points to keep this animal and other wildlife outside. Our approach is humane and is the only long term solution that works. Call 415 453-1000 X23 for a free phone consultation.
Read more about WildCare Solutions in the SF Chronicle!
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Great Gift Ideas for January
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WildCare logo-wear makes a great gift! Choose from a cool selection of caps, tees and sweatshirts on our Shop page, or visit WildCare and choose from an even larger selection!
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When you give a WildCare gift membership, your gift recipients will receive all the benefits of WildCare membership as well as the knowledge that, as WildCare members, they help create a healthy and sustainable habitat for humans and animals alike.
What a perfect gift!
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Or choose another extraordinary wild animal to adopt for that someone special! Your gift recipient will receive an art-quality photo of your chosen animal, a personalized certificate of adoption and a page of informative natural history.
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