With spring in full throttle, that means wild animals are becoming more active and babies are abundant.
It also means the North Island Wildlife Recovery Centre (NIWRA) in Errington is currently in their busiest time of year and has tips for what to do if you encounter potentially injured wildlife.
B次元官网网址淪pringtime is certainly the most busy time,B次元官网网址� Derek Downes, animal care supervisor at NIWRA, said.
B次元官网网址淲e get a lot of young birds that are either orphaned or displaced and they need raising and releasing.B次元官网网址�
The first tip is to pause before intervening and consult an expert.
B次元官网网址淓specially with young songbirds, sometimes people intervene in a situation where they donB次元官网网址檛 necessarily need to and that goes into our mission of educating the public. Anytime you have a situation, giving a rehab centre a call to guide you is the best thing, because sometimes the best course of action is getting the bird back up into the nest,B次元官网网址� Downes said.
B次元官网网址淪ongbirds on Vancouver Island fledge on the ground, so theyB次元官网网址檒l spend three to four days on the ground. Sometimes youB次元官网网址檒l see a fully feathered bird thatB次元官网网址檚 hopping around on the ground and it canB次元官网网址檛 fly but itB次元官网网址檚 not in any sort of distress, itB次元官网网址檚 just the natural progression of things.B次元官网网址�
There are cases when an animal is injured and needs to be brought in. Downes said the public will often bring in small birds, but when it comes to something like an eagle or a hawk, itB次元官网网址檚 best to, again, call in the experts.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a dangerous animal to contain if you donB次元官网网址檛 have the training.B次元官网网址�
| Anya Goldin, animal care and facility technician, holds Dugle, who came to North Island Wildlife Recovery Centre as a juvenile raven. (Agatha Lloveras Delgado) |
One rescue case is Mango, a red-tailed hawk found outside her nest with a major eye infection. Due to compromised eyesight and never being able to hunt or successfully survive in the wild, Mango is now a permanent resident at NIWRA.
B次元官网网址淪heB次元官网网址檚 an ambassador for her species. She comes out and does chats, she does bird talks in the summer which we run three times a week, and Mango is just a really special bird and a great friend.B次元官网网址�
In terms of preventing baby birds from being injured in the first place, Downes has one major tip.
B次元官网网址淢ost importantly, keeping cats inside.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淐ats are one of the biggest scorns on our wildlife, especially songbirds at baby season.B次元官网网址�
ItB次元官网网址檚 also baby season for black bears and NIWRA is the only facility on the island that rehabilitates black bears. Downes number one tip is B次元官网网址渒eeping garbage contained.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淏lack bear mothers can lose up to 40 per cent of their body weight while they have been in their state of dormancyB次元官网网址� TheyB次元官网网址檙e going to be very hungry.
B次元官网网址淪o simply keeping your garbage contained, only putting it out right before collection, not the night before, makes a huge difference.B次元官网网址�
Downes also suggests cleaning barbecues and making sure pets or livestock are being fed in enclosed buildings.
According to WildlifeBC, bears are most active from April to November.
If you find injured wildlife, contact NIWRA at . To date, NIWRA has rescued 24,850 animals.
sam.duerksen@blackpress.ca
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