Spring

Can toads give people warts?

This is one wildlife myth that has little basis in reality. While it’s true that toads have "warty" skin when compared to frogs, which are usually smooth-skinned, they definitely keep their warts to themselves! However, toads can produce skin secretions from the bumps on their skin and/or the large bean-shaped glands behind their eyes. Some of these can be irritating or even toxic if they come into contact with the mucous membranes (the eyes, nose or mouth) of predators -- including people! Wash your hands after handling a toad, or better yet, enjoy these animals from a distance.

Toad watching is easy to do on wet spring nights from April to June when American toads, Bufo americanus, burrow out of the soil where they spent the winter and migrate to ponds to mate. In areas of shallow water, males sing a trill song throughout the night to attract females. A male clasps a female behind the front legs and they swim together while two long strands of eggs, numbering several thousand, are released and fertilized. When egg laying is complete, the toads return to their solitary lives on land. Meanwhile, the eggs left behind hatch into tiny tadpoles. By June, they grow legs and arms, hop out onto land, and grow into adults. After about five years they, too, join the mating game.

I want to cut down a dead tree in my backyard but my neighbor says it is important wildlife habitat. What does this mean?

Standing dead trees, also called “snags,” provide critical resources for a large number of animals and other organisms. In fact, there are more living things associated with dead trees than with live ones. When a tree first dies, its wood is attacked by wood-boring insects, which provide food for other organisms and help begin a long decay process that occurs in well-defined stages. Each stage of decay is of value to particular kinds of wildlife, insects and microorganisms like fungi, which in turn form distinct communities in the wood.

For example, early stages are characterized by loosened bark, under which endangered Indiana bats and rare Northern Long-eared bats can roost. Later, when snags lose their bark and limbs, cavity-nesting birds such as Pileated and other woodpeckers carve out homes, move in, and feed on the plentiful insects that burrow in ever-softening wood. When the wood becomes even softer, birds like chickadees, nuthatches, and kestrels enter abandoned woodpecker cavities. Other animals that cannot excavate in wood, like flying squirrels, snakes, bees, and bats, move into yet other abandoned cavities.

Because entire communities of animals live in dead trees, think twice before removing such valuable habitats from your yard. Standing dead trees that are in danger of falling can be “topped” to remove their uppermost branches yet leave a standing trunk and crucial wildlife habitat.

Raccoons get into my garbage/attic/bird feeders. What should I do?

When handling human/wildlife conflicts, it is important to remember that many animals are doing the best they can to survive in habitats drastically reduced or altered by human invasion. Also, preventing a problem is easier than solving one, and developing a plan to coexist is preferable to eliminating native wildlife that are an integral component of our environment.

To keep animals out of your garbage, keep it indoors as long as possible and keep garbage can lids on tightly with bungee straps. In houses and buildings, seal holes where raccoons can enter an attic or garage. Drive resident animals off by placing a pie pan full of ammonia underneath the places they enter a building. In yards, provide as much natural habitat as possible. Plant native shrubs and trees that produce berries and seeds, and create a wetland habitat or small pond in your yard where raccoons can forage for frogs and other natural foods. To keep raccoons from feeders, Wild Birds Unlimited sells a raccoon baffle that slips over a 4x4 wooden post. It really works!

Remember, it is illegal to live-trap and relocate raccoons! Trapped animals must be euthanized, which is best done by a nuisance wildlife trapper. But, be prepared for others to take their place. Instead, learn the natural history of raccoons so you can enjoy observing them outside where they belong, throughout the year. February is mating season, complete with sounds similar to cat-fights as hormones rage. Babies are born in April. Watch how attentive mom is with her young. Sometimes a baby will get stuck in a tree while learning to climb. Mother raccoons have been observed carefully leading a baby back down a tree, rear feet resting on her back. Do you think raccoons must always wash their food before eating it? Why do you suppose they have a mask? Become a scientist in your own yard as you investigate these questions.

Is it legal for me to live trap a wild animal?

Yes, it is legal to trap and release some animals like squirrels and moles, but only if they are considered pests. However, such activities usually require specialized equipment and detailed knowledge of the species in question. If raccoons, opossums, or skunks are trapped, they cannot be released. Ohio law requires that these animals be euthanized or held in quarantine for 65 days because they are potential rabies vectors, which means that they can spread this deadly disease to people and other animals. Note that rabies in these animals is extremely rare; however, care should be taken when handling them and any other species of wildlife. In general, any wild animal that allows you to approach it is likely to be sick. Call your county animal control officer, which can be found in the blue pages of your phone book, to find out how to deal with it. By law, all animal bites must be reported to the Ohio Department of Health.

The trapping and euthanizing of nuisance wildlife is best done by licensed nuisance wildlife trappers who have the proper permits and know-how to deal with these animals as humanely as possible. The Ohio Division of Wildlife maintains a list of licensed trappers, and for additional information about trapping or transporting wild animals, contact the Ohio Division of Wildlife at 1-800-WILDLIFE (1-800-945-3543) or visit their website at www.dnr.state.oh.us/wildlife/.

There's a snake in my attic/basement/garage. What should I do?

If a snake finds a way in, it can usually find a way out. You may choose to leave it alone. Otherwise, place a deep cardboard box or clean square garbage can on its side near the snake and use a broom to sweep the snake into the container. Close the container, then take the snake outside and release it.

Snakes are an important part of the natural world. They play a valuable role in controlling populations of mice and rats. Many kinds of snakes once found in the Greater Cincinnati area have become uncommon due to habitat loss, over-collecting by hobbyists, and persecution by people who don't understand the value of snakes in natural systems.

Venomous snakes are very rare in this area and seldom deadly to humans. Since 1973, Bill Creasey, Chief Naturalist for Cincinnati Nature Center, has never seen anyone bring in a venomous snake. Many people have brought in snakes they have killed, positive they were venomous, only to discover that the unfortunate snake was harmless: milk snakes, black rat snakes, hognosed snakes, water snakes, and even garter snakes. Bill says, “Snakes of all varieties serve an important role in the environment. Please live and let live”.