Bobcats, Snakes and Baby Birds Discussed at CdMRA Board Meeting

Bobcats, Snakes and Baby Birds Discussed at CdMRA Board Meeting

It?s spring, which means it?s the season for snakes and baby animals in the Corona del Mar/Newport Beach area, a wildlife expert told members of the Corona del Mar Residents Association at a board meeting this morning.

?It?s the time of year for baby birds, baby animals,? said Dick Newell of the Orange County Trackers wildlife group.

Corona del Mar residents may see bobcat mothers, he said, who sometimes will scale a fence and slip under a deck to have babies.

?Bobcats are actually moving into your neighborhoods intentionally to get away from coyotes,? he said. Bobcats won?t harm humans or domestic pets, he said, and the mothers will keep her kittens safe for about 30 days until they are strong enough to move on. Once they leave, Newell said, there seldom is any trace that they were there.

Snakes, he said, also are unlikely to bite humans unless they are startled, and skunks are not likely to spray unless they are afraid.

?Skunks are wonderful because they get rid of mice and bugs,? he said.

Cougars are very unlikely to be seen in the area, he said. But feral pigs have been spotted in Newport Beach.

The biggest local threat to dogs and cats and other pets that spend time outside, he said, are coyotes, owls and raccoon.

?I?ve seen German shepherds killed by raccoons,? he said. Residents should keep pets inside or in protected shelters and never feed raccoons or other wildlife, he said. To avoid snakes, clear brush and piles of leaves from your property and be careful of woodpiles, he said.

Lyme disease-carrying ticks are not a problem in Orange County, he said, largely because local lizards have a protein in their blood that kills the disease, so when a tick bites the lizard, the ticks no longer spread the illness. And while rabies is not a problem locally, he said, anyone who finds a dead bat should not touch it and immediately call Animal Control.

One animal it?s OK to touch, he said, was a baby bird that had fallen from its nest. If possible, gently pick up the bird and put it back, he advised.

?The mother will just say thank you, but you won?t be able to understand, of course,? he said.

Anyone with wildlife questions should check out the OC Trackers website. He and other volunteers can identify animals from their prints or scat, sometimes being able to tell the gender of the animal by a single paw print. In some cases, Newell said he sets up wildlife cameras to record and gather information about local wildlife.

The CdMRA board met at the OASIS Senior Center. The group also heard City Council reports from Nancy Gardner and Ed Selich, who said that city trees would be the subject of an upcoming City Council Study Session.

Source: http://www.coronadelmartoday.com/35491/home/bobcats-snakes-and-baby-birds-discussed-at-cdmra-board-meeting/

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