Ants can become a nuisance when they become overpopulated, and invasive fire ants— which aren’t a natural part of our ecosystem and can carry a particularly nasty sting— are especially frustrating to deal with. Thankfully, we have lots of wild animals who help keep the populations of ant colonies in check! Native lizards, especially skinks,Continue reading “Nature’s Ant Control Crew”
Tag Archives: pests
Botflies: Why Lumpy Squirrels Don’t Need Help
Rehabbers get a lot of calls about lumpy squirrels, especially in summer! There are two common causes of lumps on squirrels: squirrelpox, a viral infection we’ll discuss in a separate post, and botflies, which are insects that develop in animals’ skin in the larval stage. When people find lumpy squirrels, they almost always feel thatContinue reading “Botflies: Why Lumpy Squirrels Don’t Need Help”
Don’t Exterminate Your Exterminators
We’re so lucky that our ecosystem is full of animals who work behind the scenes to keep our homes, lawns, and gardens free of pests! One single owl, for example, can kill twelve mice per night, while a skunk will spend weeks digging up every rat’s nest in a neighborhood. Coyotes are probably the bestContinue reading “Don’t Exterminate Your Exterminators”
How Feeding Pets Outside Hurts Wildlife
Are you one of the people who tends to leave bowls of cat and dog food outdoors at all times? As strange as it sounds, this seemingly innocent act is one of the most harmful things that can happen to wild animals. Before leaving pet food outside, please consider this: Outdoor pet food spreads diseaseContinue reading “How Feeding Pets Outside Hurts Wildlife”
Native Bird Nests are Legally Protected
We received a frustrating— and all-too-common— call yesterday. After barn swallows chose an apartment complex in Red Bank to raise their young, management hired a crew to pressure-wash the nests away, resulting in the deaths of many innocent baby birds. The few survivors were picked up by a caring tenant, who we referred to aContinue reading “Native Bird Nests are Legally Protected”
10 Cool Facts About Armadillos
We ❤️ armadillos, especially our current nine-banded armadillo patient, Myron! Here are some especially cool and weird facts about these especially cool and weird animals. Armadillos have some of the largest penises, in proportion to their body size, of any mammal. Their penises are about 30-60% of their total body length. That’s the equivalent ofContinue reading “10 Cool Facts About Armadillos”
Relocating Wildlife Spreads Disease
Please, please stop relocating wildlife. Arya’s mother’s story is one of many that we hope will convince people to stop moving wild animals around. Arya came to us a couple of weeks ago after her mother had been “humanely relocated” after ending up in someone’s attic. Within two days of admission, she began to developContinue reading “Relocating Wildlife Spreads Disease”
Don’t Kill Coyotes to Protect Cats
Coyotes are frequently killed out of a cruel and misguided attempt to protect pet cats. This is unfair not only to the mother and father coyotes, but also to their pups who get left behind. How can any cat owner say they care about animals if they would sentence puppies to such a horrible, scaryContinue reading “Don’t Kill Coyotes to Protect Cats”
These Animals Don’t Dig Burrows!
No animal deserves to die for doing what comes naturally to it, but it’s especially upsetting when animals are killed for something they don’t actually do. Cottontail rabbits, raccoons, opossums, and tree squirrels all get killed routinely by people worried that they will dig burrows in their lawns. European rabbits dig burrows, so many peopleContinue reading “These Animals Don’t Dig Burrows!”
Getting Raccoons Out of Your Attic Humanely
It’s a situation that happens to every year: a home owner discovers that a raccoon has tried to raise a family in an attic or crawlspace. When Mom is out looking for food, the home owner brings the kits to a wildlife rehabilitator— often refusing to take no for an answer— and assume that theContinue reading “Getting Raccoons Out of Your Attic Humanely”
For Fox Sake Wildlife Rescue 