Wildlife In The Pinery

The following are excerpts from Pinery Newsletter articles

• Help save Our wildlife

• Deer and Rabbit Resistant Plants List

• Pine Beetles - Mountain Pine & ISP Beetles.

• Newborn Deer Usually Better Off Left Alone

• Cat Owners, Perhaps You Didn’t Realize

• Proper Handling Of Wildlife Issues In The Pinery

• Pinery Bird Sanctuary Page

• Pinery Bird Checklist (Download Forms)

• Mountain Lion Awareness

Colorado Division of Wildlife.

   An excellent source of information on Pinery Wildlife is the Colorado Division of Wildlife

Help Save Our Wildlife!
Jeff Rucks, State Coordinator,
 Project Wild, Colorado Division of Wildlife

     In spite of recent development, we still enjoy seeing deer, foxes and coyotes as well as numerous smaller forms of wildlife in The Pinery. Unfortunately domestic pets will instinctively chase wildlife, and loose dogs in packs are capable of killing even large animals such as deer. It is against the law for dogs to chase any form of wildlife, including deer. Dog owners can be fined $138 if their dogs are seen chasing deer, and if the deer is killed the owner could be held liable for the loss of the animal, possibly in excess of $1,000.
     The migratory songbird population in the U.S. is down forty per cent. House cats may be the biggest reason for this depletion. It is estimated that one million songbirds are killed by cats every day. Cat owners often have their cats declawed or put bells on them under the mistaken notion that this will keep them from killing songbirds. Even declawed cats wearing bells can approach and kill a bird on the ground.

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Cat Owners, Perhaps You Didn’t Realize:

   Stanley Temple, a professor of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at the University of Wisconsin, did a study on cats and bird population in Wisconsin. In one year, cats killed 19 million songbirds and 140,000 game birds in that state alone!
   According to the National Audubon Society, cats kill hundreds of millions of native birds and other small animals annually in the United States. They have contributed to the decline and extinction of numerous bird species worldwide. Due to such alarming statistics, the Audubon Society has recently adopted a resolution urging that all cats be kept inside.
   During the nesting season baby birds are particularly vulnerable to predators. Please be a responsible pet owner and keep your cats under control.  What a sad world this would be without birds!

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Newborn Deer Usually Better Off Left Alone.

   If you find a deer fawn that appears to be abandoned, remember that deer fawns are born with natural camouflage and a lack of scent. In the first few days of their lives, the newborns are not mobile enough to travel with their mothers. As a defensive tactic to keep nearby predators away from the newborns’ location, the mothers will often leave the young animals alone for long periods of time. During this crucial period the mothers will visit the newborns at least twice a day to feed them. After a few days, the fawns are usually strong enough to join their mothers and the herd, where there’s more protection.

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Proper Handling Of Wildlife Issues In The Pinery

 From time to time the PHA office receives calls from concerned residents regarding the proper handling of wildlife issues in the Pinery. Recently, such a call addressed inadvertent harm to a pet when it ingested poison intended for mice or squirrels. This prompted an appeal to the Colorado Division of Wildlife on how wildlife issues can be handled legally and responsibly. What follows is an excerpt from Urban Wildlife Rescue, Inc.

 “Many wildlife populations increase and decrease naturally, in response to available food, nesting areas, etc. When an animal is trapped or relocated from its habitat, a void is created. The food and nesting habitat once used by the trapped animal is now available to other animals. As long as the habitat is suitable, another animal or ecologically similar species moving into the area may fill the void. If too many voids are created, pregnancy rates and the number of young born per litter will increase in order to fill the voids and take advantage of the available resources. This ultimately results in a population increase.”

 “Since vertebrate species that have become pests have done so simply because they are so adapted to the prevailing habitat conditions, biological control, in particular the making of a habitat unsuitable to the species in question when such can be accomplished, is generally considered a much more desirable and effective procedure for controlling animals than just attempting to destroy or otherwise remove troublesome individuals. Also, …the destruction of individuals by artificial means (shooting, poisoning, etc.) or by natural predation may have only a temporary effect and in the long run may result in stimulating the offending population of animals to increase to a level of density that is greater than it would have been if no control had been attempted.”

 In short, attempts to eradicate indigenous pests are pointless in the long run. Most of us have chosen to share this unique community with the wildlife it includes. Let us each think through all the possible repercussions of our actions when we try to alter this environment, and take responsibility for any harm inadvertently caused.

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Mountain Lion Awareness

   The Pinery HOA has received three mountain lion reports from the eastern half of the Pinery. The following information is from the Colorado Division of Wildlife.

When Mountain Lions Meet People
   Generally, lions are calm, quiet, and elusive. They tend to live in remote, primitive country. Lions are most commonly found in areas with plentiful deer and adequate cover. Such conditions exist in mountain subdivisions, urban fringes, and open spaces. Consequently, the number of mountain lion/human interactions has increased. This increase is likely due to a variety of reasons: more people moving into lion habitat, increase in deer populations and density, presumed increase in lion numbers and expanded range, more people using hiking and running trails in lion habitat and a greater awareness of the presence of lions.

What to do if you live in lion country
   To reduce the risk of problems with mountain lions on or near your property, we urge you follow these simple precautions:

• Make lots of noise if you come and go during times mountain lions are most active—dusk to dawn.
  Install outside lighting. Light areas where you walk so you could see a lion if one were present.
  Closely supervise children whenever they play outdoors. Make sure children are inside before dusk and not outside before dawn. Talk with children about lions and teach them what to do if they meet one.
• Landscape or remove vegetation to eliminate hiding places for lions, especially around children’s play areas. Make it difficult for lions to approach unseen.
• Planting non-native shrubs and plants that deer often prefer to eat encourages wildlife to come onto your property. Predators follow prey. Feeding the wildlife is dangerous and illegal!
• Keep your pet under control. Roaming pets are easy prey and can attract lions. Bring pets in at night. If you leave your pet outside, keep it in a kennel with a secure top. Don’t feed pets outside; this can attract raccoons and other animals that are eaten by lions. Store all garbage securely.

Who do you call?
The Colorado Division of Wildlife is responsible for managing, conserving, and protecting wildlife.

If you have an encounter with a lion, immediately contact the Division of Wildlife, Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. - 303-291-7227. After hours, contact the Colorado State Patrol or Sheriff’s department.

To report a sighting, please contact the Division during normal business hours. Your information is very valuable.

For more information go online to: http://wildlife.state.co.us