Where Does the Wildlife go When Humans Crowd Them Out??

There is a wildlife area about 80 miles from where I live that you can drive thru and usually see a large variety of animals in the wild. We have never encountered anyone else when we visit, which makes it even better. We've see too many species of birds to list, wild hogs, deer, turkey, gators, bobcats, armadillos, possums, raccoons, turtles, snakes, you name it. My son and his family drove thru there last Saturday tho and were blessed to see a Florida panther and her cub. They were so excited when they called me. Not many people get to see a panther in the wild these days, much less with a cub.

When I was a kid I remember camping with my family on Marco Island (before the developers ruined it). My Granddaddy had gone to get firewood and ran across a panther in the woods. My brother and parents occasionally saw them in the cane fields close to our house but that was many, many years ago. Thankfully they are now increasing in number but they are still endangered.

A few months ago my parents were returning home from Ft Meyers and a black bear crossed the road in front of them. When I was a child you NEVER heard of anyone siting a bear in Florida. There were a few left in the Everglades and Ocala National Park but the majority had been hunted almost to extinction. Thank goodness they have made a comeback. In some areas they have even become a nuisance at times. Some of the hunters in Florida want the state to open a season on them again but thank goodness so far it hasn't happened.

My parents have gators and otters in the canals next to their house and have seen bobcats, foxes, raccoons and possums in their yard. One night my Daddy heard something bumping around under their house (they have the old Florida off the ground type) and when he went out into the yard the next day the pole that their martin house rested on was all scratched up. The authorities caught a bear at the dike surrounding Lake Okeechobee that afternoon.........a few miles from my parents house. I think it is amazing that wild animals somehow find a way to exist even with people constantly pushing them out of their habitat. Hopefully they will continue to do so.

 

We do have many things come to our 2 acres.Deer,Bald Eagles. But not just people moving in- Iowa had some major flooding.We use to raise quail 1,000 a year. Mostly people bought them to turn loose .But pheasants are way down.Spring floods killed many of the babies.We use to raise Viszla Hunting dogs.Still gets call haven't had a puppy for 10 years. Guys said to go way up North to hunt.Iowa is good about paying Farmers not to plant. Set-a side Land.Got public hunting all along Iowa River-100 miles of it.It got flooded bad in 08.And Cedar river also. Places was 20 feet over flood stage.

 

Some of the wildlife moves on to smaller and smaller habitats that are left, and some adjust to humans. We have raccoons, coyotes, opossums, skunks, snakes, turtles, toads and frogs, and at least 20 species of birds (not all at once, but during the year) here on our little farm. We live with them, but if that 'coon doesn't stop overturning my feed barrel, he may move on!
There is a creek about 6 miles from here that has a resident cougar and has been seen with her cubs. Deer run along the creek and woods on Sandy Creek, which is a half-mile from here, and we spotted a fox crossing the pasture once.
When good farmland is taken for an "office park" (now there's an oxymoron!) or woodlands are cut down for a subdivision called "The Oaks" I wonder what goes through folks' heads. The wildlife won't go away, and there are more of them than there are of us, so we'd better make a place for them to live or they'll be living under our house and stalking our pets!

 

I am lucky enough to live rural and this is also 'green space' which means that the lands around will remain agricultural. I am lucky enough to look out my window and see deer, wild turkeys, fox, coyote, hawks, pheasants, etc. I have even seen a cougar not far from home. I also work at a 300 acre estate that is now surrounded by subdivision so now that is like a big animal sanctuary. The animals have no where else to go. I keep seeing homes being built and standing empty and wonder why the builder felt it so necessary to build there, destroying the natural habitat of so many creatures. Recently, there has been a raise in coyote sightings and pet disappearances.

 

I only have a half acre now but there are raccoons, possums, squirrels and numerous bird species living there. Of course they have to stay out of my dogs way so I think the majority of them have moved to the other side of my fences. I wish my dogs wouldn't bother them but their yard belongs to "them".

I used to have a four foot iguana living in my back yard. He would eat out of my hand. One day I found him in my cutting garden where the seedlings were only about three inches high. He thought he had found a free all you can eat buffet. I chased him out of the garden and he moved down two houses to a neighbor with a huge ficus tree and a good size pond.

One day I was cleaning in the back yard and saw what I thought was a black plastic bowl. When I picked it up, it as a Gopher Tortoise. I just put him back down and left the area......haven't seen him since.

I still have a few different species of frogs/toads,the brown and occasionally a green anole, a couple species of geckos, Curly Tail lizards and the Knights anole that I see........no telling what is hiding. :-D

 

What i think is plain stupid. Tear all the huge 100 year old trees out build houses. And Plant Sticks. Or tear all the trees along fence line. or Creek. And cry because when when creek came up washed some of the land away.Tree roots have kept soil there for many year. Or in high winds-blows top soil away.

 

"Tear all the huge 100 year old trees out build houses"

I agree. I think they now have a law here in Fl, maybe just my county, regarding having to leave so many trees. I remember when they would go into an area, mow down trees that were hundreds of years old, build houses and as you said plant sticks. I still see some homes without a single tree in their yard. To each his own but to me no trees just makes it look like a temporary place.

 

You all just hit a sore spot with me. :twisted: I use to live in the country until 2 summers ago. I now have an on going sub-division being built in my back yard. 25 feet from my privacy fence. When finished it will have 79 4 plex townhouses. Which means if only 2 people per townhouse = 632 people, now add the kids and pets and noisy. Two cars per household = 158 cars, now add the kids with hotrods. Now try getting in or out of my driveway. Shortly after the first two building were sold we had to have a security system installed, because tha places behind us were getting broken into. But worst of all is the poor wildlife. The last two summers I have been over run with woodchucks, rabbits, skunks, opossums, deer . But the worst is the snakes. They are more apt to be poisonous then not. I've had two cats killed by copperheads, so I am very leary on anything that crawls. I love my yard and gardens, they took me 25 years to develope them. I'm to old to start over again, so moving is out of the question. Sad part is it's not just the animals being displaced it's the old folks to.
Thanks for letting me vent.

 

I found out, in a heartbreaking way, where they go. On my way to work one morning I hit a deer crossing rt. 17 in Paramus, N.J. If you're familiar with it, you know that Paramus is the mall capitol of the tri-state area. I hit the deer right by the Suburban diner; the very last place you'd expect to see a deer.... this is mall-city. Poor thing's legs were broken & I quickly called police before it caused an accident on this busy highway. Cop came out & shot it & put it in his trunk. So, so sad how the animals aren't even considered when greedy city planners see nothing but dollar signs.