Honourable Kevin J. MacAdam, Minister of Fisheries and Environment today reminded anyone who encounters young birds and mammals in their backyards, fields and woodlots to leave them alone. The Minister reported that each year the Fish and Wildlife Division receive "rescue" calls from people who have picked up birds or mammals and are looking for assistance for the animals. "Interfering with apparently lost, orphaned, or abandoned young does not help wildlife populations," said Mr. MacAdam.
"Although they appear to be orphans, often these animals have only temporarily strayed from the adult female and will be recovered by her eventually," said Mr. MacAdam. People who handle fledgling birds and young mammals are not doing the wild animals any favour. Quite the contrary -- they are exposing them to unnecessary stress and probable eventual death. Rarely will the young animal survive but those that do, such as young raccoons, will become problem animals as they reach maturity. Attempts to reintroduce captive wildlife into the wild usually fail because the animals have not learned to survive on their own.
Sometimes young animals are orphaned through accidental death or natural predation to the parents. In the natural world, far more young are produced annually than are necessary to maintain the populations of each wildlife species. An equally high mortality rate must balance this high birth rate. Predation and scavenging by other species are natural, and necessaryprocesses to insure the long-term health of wildlife populations.
While prohibited by the provincial wildlife policy from keeping native wildlife in captivity, some individuals do occasionally handle wildlife. These people risk exposing themselves to bites, and pathogenic organisms such as parasites and bacterial and viral disease organisms. "While the concern for wildlife is admirable, young wild birds and mammals that are found should be left alone, both for the benefit of the wildlife and the safety of the humans they encounter," stressed Mr. MacAdam.
Contact: Randy Diblee, Biologist, Fish and Wildlife Division, 368-4666