WILDLIFE NEWS OF THE DAY - 070809

A Connecticut journalist vents his ire at garden invaders in a whimsical article in our first wildlife item today; followed by the trials and tribulations of a couple of Canadians trying to build a wildlife garden outside of Ottawa, Ontario. A wildlife writer dispenses some wisdom to visitors about Texas wildlife behavior in the summertime. Reflections about the veracity of cougar sightings on a Canadian island are up next; followed by another cougar attack on a youngster that was reported in British Columbia; and the story of a 110-lb lamb that was the victim of a cougar attack in Portola, California. An environmental group will sue the Environmental Protection Agency over the presence of pesticides in polar bear food sources; but at least the polar bear custody battle that raged for months in Germany appears to have finally been settled. A sad end for a nuisance grizzly in Montana that was struck by a train; while a black bear that broke into a home and wandered into the lobby of a hotel in Glenwood, Colorado, was relocated 100 miles away. Sighting of a trio of bears elsewhere in Colorado has prompted discussion of precautions homeowners should take; followed by more details on bears shot in Utah over the weekend. Wildlife encounters seem to be increasing in the vicinity of Buffalo, New York. Even celebrities are not immune to wildlife incursions, as rocker Ozzy Osbourne found out when a coyote killed his pet; but as coyote sightings increase, residents of Independence, Ohio, are given some tips on co-existing with them. Montana and Idaho are preparing for the first gray wolf hunts in those states for years even as environmentalists promise to block them through legal action; and a look at the litigation that forced government officials to put gray wolves back on the Endangered Species list in Michigan is provided by the next article. A deer that crashed through the front window of a pizza shop in Boston, Massachusetts, had to be put down due to injuries; while a housesitter in Georgia found an uninvited guest taking a dip in the pool. A deer wandered into a toy store in Victoria, British Columbia. Another commentator, this time from Idaho, weighs in on the means of detoxing your pets (and sometimes yourself) after a skunk encounter. And finally, the next time you see a badger in the road, don't assume it's dead - it may just be drunk, as one in Germany turned out to be!

David Schiefelbein: I declare it 'Violence to Varmints Month'

Ottawa-area wildlife garden sparks complaints from neighbours

Snakes, bugs, coyotes may get closer to your home in the heat

Is legendary eastern cougar prowling Manitoulin Island?

Mother fends cougar off son in Quesnel

Mountain Lion kills 4-H lamb in Portola

Group will sue EPA over pesticides in polar bears

Pay-off ends polar bear custody battle

Train kills grizzly bear

Bear breaks into Glenwood home, hotel

Bear necessities

Bear shot and killed in Provo Canyon

Bears and Coyotes, Oh My!

Ozzy Osbourne mourns death of dog after it's eaten by a coyote

Precautions can keep coyotes from house: Independence

States ready for first open wolf hunts

Legal pressure causes gray wolves to return to endangered species list

Deer Crashes Through Pizza Shop Window

Deer Takes Dip In Buckhead Pool

Deer in downtown Victoria store was looking to graze, not browse

Skunks can be a doggone problem

Drunk badger blocks German road