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For TIPS on Bottle Feeding Baby Deer (Fawns)
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BOX TURTLE FACTS
Description: A dry land animal, with a 4 to 8 inch dome shaped shell, heavily marked with yellow, orange or olive on black or brown Bottom of shell hinged, allowing turtle to withdraw limbs and shut tightly.
Weighs about 1 pound.
Habitat: Woodlands, fields edges, forest bottomlands, suburban backyards near water.
Habits: Diurnal and solitary, except when breeding. Possible homing instinct. Hibernates during winter in about 2 feet of soil, a rotted log or tree stump, or stream bank.
Form / Nest: Sleeps at night in shallow form which is dug with front feet in soil or forest debris. Lays eggs in flask-shaped nest, dug with hind feet at night.
Food: Young are carnivorous, adults herbivorous. food includes earthworms, slugs, snails, insects and
their larvae, crayfish, small frogs and toads, snakes and carrion. Vegetables include leaves, grass, berries, fuits and mushrooms. Will eat lettuce and hamburger in captivity.
Voice: None. Only noise made is hissing made when air escapes from shell when closing.
Locomotion: Shuffling waddle on tiptoes as legs alternatively shift shell over the ground.
Life Span: May live to the ripe age of 60-80 years in wild, some specimens beleived to be over 100 years old.
RACCOON FACTS
Description: The black robber's mask across the eyes and the banded tail are unmistakable. Body fur is grizzled grey-brown. Generally measures anywhere from 10 to 35 pounds. Southern raccoons are smaller than those in the North. In the extreme South, like the Florida Keys, adult raccoons may weigh as little as 4 to 5 pounds.
Habitat: Almost everywhere except in the very high mountains or desert regions. Farmland, woods, parks, cities, suburbs. Prefers to be near water and large hardwood trees with natural cavities for nesting purposes.
Habits: Nocturnal. Sociable with other raccoons to some degree. May den with others during winter.
Den / Nest: Ideal nest and den site is the hollow of a large tree. Will also use manmade structures, and, in winter, may den in a woodchuck burrow.
Food: Omnivorous. Eats almost anything. Loves aquatic animals, fruits, nuts, cultivated grains, birdseed, bird eggs, garbage and occasionally a small mammal or bird.
Voice: Has a number of vocalizations. Whimpers, whines, squeals, cries like a baby as a cub. Screams, churrs, and purrs.
Locomotion: A slow lumbering gait when walking. Can run, with maximum speed under 15 mph. A good climber.
Life Span: About six years in the wild, perhaps longer. Generally 10 to 14 years in captivity.
WOODCHUCK FACTS
Description: A brown, chunky 5 to 10 pound animal about 2 feet long, including it's bushy 6-inch tail. It's head has a slightly flattened top.
Habitat: Meadows, pastures, abandoned fields, open areas near woods, vacant lots, brushy slopes, and backyards that are close to or adjacent to these features.
Habits: Diurnal. Hibernates from about October to February. Solitary except for short period during breeding season and when female is raising young. Occasionally two young woodchucks of the opposite sex will spend their first winter in the same den. Breeds when about one year old.
Den / Nest: Den is an underground tunnel system with chambers for sanitation and sleeping. the sleeping chamber is also the nest in which the young are raised. Dried grasses may be brought in as nesting material.
Food: Herbivorous. Nearly everything consumed is vegetable matter. Favorites are clover and alfalfa. Also eats grasses, herbs, cultivated fruits and vegetables, if available.
Voice: Most common vocalization is an alarm call of a shrill whistle. Also chirps, growls, snarls, squeals, and hisses.
Locomotion: Usually scurries short distances. Can run, but top speed is probably less than 9 mph.
Life Span: Probably 4 to 5 years in the wild, but has the potential to live 10.
GREY SQUIRREL FACTS
Description: A large, grey tree squirrel, 8 to 11 inches long, with a bushy tail measuring an additional 8 to 10 inches.
Habitat: Hardwood forests with nut trees, river bottoms and wooded suburban backyards
Habits: Active during daylight, all year. Seldom far from trees
Den / Nest: Tree cavities in winter, sometimes leaf nests in summer, will use man-made nesting boxes.
Food: Tree Nuts, fruits, seeds, buds, flowers, mushrooms, birdseed.
Voice: Noisy. A rapid kut, kut, kut means danger; less rapid means danger has passed. Also chatters, screams, barks, mews, purrs, and whines.
Locomotion: Scurries along the ground at about 12 mph; travels with ease from tree to tree by jumping.
Life Span: Average one year in the wild, but potential for at least 12 1/2 years. Has lived over 20 years in
captivity
FLYING SQUIRREL FACTS
Description: A tiny, baby-faced squirrel with enormous shiny black eyes. Brownish above, white underneath, with a flat tail, and a loose skin flap that extends along the side of the body from the foreleg to the hind leg.
Habitat: Primarily deciduous hardwoods, especially hickory, beech, oak and maple.
Habits: Strictly nocturnal. Is very sociable among its own species, even gregarious. Gentle, and from a human standpoint, presents no problems (except for those unwelcome residents in attics.)
Den / Nest: Usually an abandoned woodpecker hole, but frequently a natural tree cavity, and sometimes even a birdhouse.
Food: Nuts, fruits, berries, tree buds, and insects. Will readily eat seeds and suet at a bird feeding location.
Occasionally meat or an egg.
Voice: Has a variety of calls, from a soft twitter, to a squeak, to a churring sound.
Locomotion: Can scamper up and down tree trunks, as well as any diurnal squirrel. Glides from tree to tree by spreading its patagium and volplaning. Is awkward on the ground, but may be found there occasionally.
Life Span: In the wild, they probably live less than 5 years, but one captive flying squirrel has lived over 13 years.
WHITE FOOTED MOUSE FACTS
Description: A handsome 5 to 9 inch mouse (the tail is half it's length) with fawn or chestnut-brown back and white undersides and feet. Large ears and large, beady black eyes. Weight average less than one ounce.
Habitat: Brushy woodlands, streamside thickets, suburban and rural backyards, farms, and farm buildings.
Habits: Nocturnal. Solitary, unless breeding or raising young. Home range about 1/4 acre. Hoards food for winter.
Den / Nest: Globular, often in an old bird nest, birdhouse, stump, log or stone wall. Made of grass and sticks and lined with shredded plant materials.
Food: Seeds, nuts, fruits, green plants, insects and small amounts of meat (carrion)
Voice: Churring, squeaking, squealing, and high-pitched singing. Will also make a buzzing sound by
drumming it's feet.
Locomotion: Gallops in a zig-zag manner, though more often a walk or trot. It also stalks and pounces on prey like at cat.
Life Span: Less than one year in the wild, though capable of living a year or two longer. In captivity, 8 years is possible.
COTTONTAIL RABBIT FACTS
Description: Typical "bunny" is furred in brown; belly and underside of tail are white. Big eyes; long upright ears, stubby "cottontail"
Habitat: Meadows, pastures, backyards, parks, roadsides, hedgerows, fencerows, open woodland. Particularly likes areas providing brushy cover, thickets, tall weeds.
Habits: Generally crepuscular, mostly active at dawn and dusk. Usually solitary, except when breeding or in nest as young.
Den / Nest: The den, or form, is usually a shallow depression in dense cover where the animal rests during the day. In severe weather or to escape a pursuer, a cottontail may seek shelter in a woodchuck or badger burrow. The nest built by the female for her young is a shallow bowl lined with and covered with grasses, leaves, and soft fur which she plucks from her own body.
Food: Nearly any form of plant life. In summer, grasses, leaves, flowers, and sedges are staples. In winter, bark, twigs, and buds.
Voice: Generally silent. Mother may make soft grunting sounds to her young. Youngsters in nest may squeal. When facing death, wounded or in
trauma, can emit a loud piercing scream. Like the howl of a timber wolf or the call of a loon, this haunting sound, once heard, is seldom forgotten.
Locomotion: When at ease, a cottontail may move slowly, making movements that look like slow-motion hops. If pursued, it bounds along with impressive speed. Each leap may cover 5 to 15 feet.
Life Span: The life expectancy of a cottontail is certainly less than a year in the wild; some say as little as 6 months. In a few rare instances, researchers have captured the same tagged individual cottontail over a period of 3 to 4 years. In captivity, they have lived more than 5 years.
AMERICAN TOAD FACTS - Bufus Americanus
Description: A classic Garden toad, up to 4 1/2 inches long, with warts on it's back and black specks on it's belly. Some, particularly the larger females, may be more brightly colored and patterned in brick red, orange and yellow. Large, elongated parotoid glands are located behind the eyes; large spint warts appear on the upper surfaces of the hind legs.
Habitat: Nearly everywhere in the East from backyard gardens to mountaintop woodlands where there is cover, moist soil and food
Habits: Solitary, except during spring breeding season when it joins large numbers of its
species in shallow bodies of water to lay and fertilize strings of
eggs. Spends early life in water as tadpole.
Den / Nest: Backs into burrow to hide and await prey. During hot, dry weather will aestivate under rocks and in rotted logs and loose
soil. Hibernates in winter in similar locations a foot or more underground.
Food: Tadpole eats algae particles of plants and microscopic animals;
adult eats insects, snails, slugs, earthworms and spiders. In
captivity, will eat mealworms. Water absorbed through skin.
Voice: Spring song of male is a musical trill, considered one of natures most beautiful
sounds. Also chirps when handled and screams when being attacked.
Locomotion: Hops
Life Span: If it survives aquatic stage, may live three to four years in the wild. One captive toad lived 31 years.
WHITE-TAILED DEER FACTS
Description: A large hoofed animal, 38 to 40 inches high at the shoulder, 4 to 6 feet
long. Hair is reddish in summer, brownish-gray to nearly blue in winter. Well-fed males annually grow antlers with 4 to 8 or more points.
Habitat: Forest edges, swamp borders, woodland openings and suburban backyards.
Habits: Mainly crepuscular and gregarious, forming small family groups led by old does. Flashes white undertail when alarmed.
Den / Nest: Deer curls into spot on ground within 2 to3 square-mile oval shaped home range.
Food: Browses on a variety of woody deciduous plants and some coniferous growth; grazes on grasses , herbs and mushrooms. Also grubs for roots.
Voice: Snorts when alarmed. Also bleats and whistles. Fawns bleats.
Locomotion: Runs at normal speeds of 35 mph, maximum of 45 mph; gallops, trots, leaps and jumps to 8.5 feet vertically and 27 feet horizontally. Good swimmer.
Life Span: Few bucks live more than 1.5 years due to hunter harvest, and does a year or two longer, though normal life in the wild can be 11 to 12 years. Captive deer have survived to nearly 20.
CHIPMUNK FACTS
Description: A rusty-red, fur covered rodent with stripes on body and head, weighing about 3 ounces and 9 to 10 inches long.
Habitat: Forests, fencerows, rock walls, shrubby thickets, and suburban gardens.
Habits: Diurnal, ground-dwelling squirrel. Spends most of its time in a burrow below the surface. Can climb trees. Is a passionate hoarder of seeds and nuts, which it carries in it's cheek pockets.
Den / Nest: Digs 12 feet or more of tunneling leading to a nest, sleeeping chamber and storage rooms
Food: Omnivorous, feeding on nuts, seeds, fruit, plant bulbs, bird's eggs, young birds, insects, snails, and the occasional mouse.
Voice: Chatterbox with a variety of calls including calls, chucks, trills, whistles, and chatters.
Locomotion: Skitters along the ground at amazing speed.
Life Span: Average life is 1.3 years, though is biologically capable of living 12 years in the wild.
OPOSSUM FACTS
Description: A housecat-sized animal, furred in grizzled gray. Beady black
eyes, pink nose, and feet, black eyes on top of its head, pointed snout and naked, light-colored tail.
Habitat: The opossum finds that wooded lots, wilderness, farmland, parks, city neighborhoods, and suburban backyards suit it just fine. Ideal habitat is wooded with water nearby.
Habits: Nocturnal; rarely seen abroad in daylight. Slow-moving, solitary. Sometimes falls into deathlike state as a defense mechanism.
Den / Nest: Hollow trees, or logs; abandoned burrows of woodchucks, skunks, or foxes; in culverts or drainpipes; under porches; in thickets; woodpiles or brush piles; in barns or outbuildings. Nest comprised of leaves carries inside enclosure.
Food: Omnivorous. Scavenges carrion, especially in the form of roadkill and game crippled by hunters. Eats all types of berries, persimmons when available, some corn, occasionally a henhouse chicken, sometimes wild bird eggs and nestlings, many insects, mice, frogs, toads, lizards and snakes.
Voice: Hisses, screeches and growls, but is generally silent. Male in the presence of female in estrus, and sometimes a female of youngsters, makes a clicking sound.
Locomotion: A slow, plodding, waddling gait on the ground, both legs on one side moving in unison. Also at home in trees. Climbs relatively well and uses prehensile tail as an anchor line to secure positions in trees.
Life Span: Few live to the age of 2 years; most probably survive a year in the wild.
SKUNK FACTS
Description: A cat-sized animal. Its long, black fur is marked with a white line in the middle, starting in a thin line between the eyes, broadening into 2 lines running down the back and usually onto the tail. Tail is a long, lush plume. Feet are rather short, snout is pointed, ears are small.
Habitat: Open woodlands, brushy fields, urban, suburban and rural backyards.
Habits: Nocturnal. In North, sleeps during most of the winter. May be gregarious in winter den. When threatened, sprays a pungent musk from scent glands under the tail.
Den / Nest: An abandoned woodchuck, fox, or badger hole, if available, or in a rock pile, woodpile, hollow stump or log, or under an outbuilding.
Food: Omnivorous. Diet is 70 percent animal (primarily insects and small mammals) and nearly 30 percent vegetable (buds, berries, fruits, and grasses.)
Voice: Usually silent, but sometimes softly grunts when eating. Can snarl, growl, churr, and twitter like a bird.
Locomotion: A slow, ambling gait of about 1 mph. Top speed when running is about 6 mph.
Life Span: Probably one or two years in the wild. Has lived up to 10 years in captivity.
TIGER SWALLOWTAIL BUTTERFLY FACTS
Description: A bright, yellow and black butterfly 4 to 6 1/2 inches long with a large black V on the inner half of each hind wing. It has five black bars on each forewing, the innermost two of which extend to the top of the V. Some blue is evident on the
inner margins of the hind wings.
Larva: Smooth green caterpillar with large orange black-pupiled false eyes. Body is traversed with a series of orange and black stripes.
Habitat: Gardens, grasslands, paths, stream sides, and deciduous woodlands throughout the eastern two-thirds of North-America from the Arctic to the Gulf of Mexico.
Food: Adult - the nectar of flowers, especially pink and lavender, with large heads. Larva - the leaves of wild cherry, tulip trees, basswood, birch, ash, and poplar.
Locomotion: Erratic Flight
Life Span: Adult Male about 2 weeks, female slightly longer.
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