By Marilyn Kendall
The following is a monthly column designed to teach local residents about the wild animals that live among us. Marilyn Kendall is writing the column for the Sandy Pines Wildlife Centre, a Napanee-based facility that cares for injured wildlife.
Each week I receive an online report of Sandy Pines’ admissions. Called ‘This Week at Sandy Pines,’ it is compiled by Linda Killam, another of Sandy Pines dedicated volunteers.
And each week the list of creatures admitted to the Centre is long. During a week in late June, it included six turtles run over by vehicles, numerous nests of baby rabbits and orphaned birds, birds hit by cars, birds with unknown trauma, a cottontail and a duckling attacked by cats, two birds injured as a result of window strikes, a fawn hit by a vehicle, loons stranded on land and a northern shrike transferred from another wildlife centre for flight practice in Sandy Pines’ outdoor aviary. So many stories, many of them of the ‘bad news’ sort.
I scrolled down this long list as I do every week, thinking of and feeling discouraged by how many of these casualties are repetitions of the week before and how many of them could have been avoided. At the bottom of the list I found a more heartening note about the relocation of a nest removed by a roofing company and the successful reuniting of the chicks with their parents.
I wondered how this worked and, when asked, shelter manager Sue Meech gave me details of a similar nest relocation. In this case, four baby pileated woodpeckers were found out of their nest and on the ground after a tree was cut down. The homeowner brought the babies in and Sue, finding them to be in good condition, decided to try to establish a new nest in the same location and thus reunite the babies with their parents.
And so that same day Sue placed the tiny birds in a nest box, phoned the woman and arranged to meet her in a parking lot in Kingston, where she transferred the babies to the homeowner who took the nestlings home and, as Sue instructed, tacked the box into a tree. A few hours later, Sue was called and told that the parents were back and attending to their young.
I like telling stories like this because they show what can be done for the wild creatures around us with a little awareness, a little caring, some effort and some teamwork.
When you notice an animal in trouble, why not take a minute to phone Sandy Pines? Just a simple call can result in more “good news” stories like that of the woodpecker nestlings.
(If you would like to receive ‘This Week at Sandy Pines,’ e-mail Linda at lkillam@sympatico.ca)