Pam’s Perspective
Pam Otto is the Manager of Nature Programs and Interpretive Services for the St. Charles Park District
Okay, before we get started with this week’s column, there’s something I’ve got to say: If you’ve got an uninvited critter hanging around your house or yard, and you’d like it to leave, take care of the reason it’s there in the first place.
When you know the animal is out foraging (daytime for diurnals, nighttime for nocturnals), get busy. Fill in or block off those gaps under your porch, shed or deck, seal those cracks and crevices, and put away birdseed and feeders, pet foods and dishes and anything else that could possibly be construed as good to eat.
If, after doing all this you still have a visitor you wish you didn’t, call a wildlife removal professional. Don’t think you can catch the critter yourself. Don’t buy a live trap. And don’t ever ever EVER take the animal, which you know you shouldn’t have caught in the first place, and “set it free” in a park or forest preserve.
For one thing, our parks and forest preserves already support abundant populations of wildlife, and introducing a new individual is only going to upset the apple cart. The critter may get attacked by resident animals and suffer a lingering death from the injuries it receives. Or it may try to make its way “home,” get hit by a car, and suffer an equally horrid, lingering death.
What’s more, state and local laws prohibit private citizens from performing wildlife “catch and release,” and fines for such activities are hefty. It’s a violation to release anything in a park or forest preserve. Plus, you need a permit to possess a wild animal, even if it’s just for a little while. Think of it this way: Every native species in Illinois is managed by the state, not you. So hands off. And yes, this means you!
Alrighty then. Now that that’s off my chest, let’s get back to the column…
One of the joys of walking in the woods this time of year is the thrill of finding something unexpected—a giant hen-ofthe-woods mushroom growing on an old oak tree; a dazzlilng red jack-in-the-pulpit seed head glowing brightly next to a trail; a great horned owl napping on a branch in a shagbark hickory.
Then there’s that special feeling you get when you find something really extraordinary, like a skunk in a Havahart® trap. (Oh hey…!)
That’s exactly what happened to St. Charles resident Elisa Dressler, her son Jackson and the rest of the Davis School Wolf Cub Scout den last week as they were doing a litter sweep at LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve. Elisa said it looked like the person who dumped the unfortunate little Mephitis had tried to wrap the trap inside several large plastic bags, no doubt to try and contain the critter’s famous stench. The skunk, in its agitated state, had shredded much of the plastic, dragged it inside the trap and was sitting there, unhappy, to say the least, when the scouts arrived on the scene.
Picture that. A bunch of second-grade boys in a forest preserve, litter bags in hand, astounded at their find. Assorted grownups, who probably thought their biggest concern would be explaining how a beer can ended up in a preserve that does not allow alcohol, wondering what to do. And a honked-off skunk in a trap.
So now what?
Long story short, Elisa got in touch with officials at the Kane County Forest Preserve District. A helpful man she referred to as Ranger Anthony came and freed the skunk from its “have-a-heart” prison. She said the rest of the scouts and parents didn’t stick around, so it was only she and her son Jackson who witnessed the release. They also were the only members of the scout den to get squirted. But, she noted, “Jackson enjoyed going home a little smelly but with a story to tell.” She added that, “By the way, a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and baking soda works wonders!”
She wanted to share their story to point out the problem of irresponsible trapping. And I’m glad she did. Because it’s that time again, the season when young-of-the-year are looking for suitable places to spend the winter.
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Pam’s Perspective – Page 2
If it’s your home they’ve chosen, and you don’t want them there, educate yourself on deterrent techniques. If the situation is beyond the deterring phase, call a professional. Don’t think you’re the one exception to the rule. Don’t try to catch the critter and move it someplace else. Don’t think you can get away with something, just this once… And yes, this means you!
Pam Otto is the manager of nature programs and interpretive services for the St. Charles Park District. She can be reached at potto@stcparks.org or 630-513-4346.