WILDLIFE NEWS OF THE DAY - 090709

We lead off wildlife news today with a story about a red-tailed hawk that was released back into the wild in Ventura County, California; followed by one about a hawk observation post in Utah with 30 years of history that is struggling to remain open due to budget cuts. As the deer population exceeds the maximum allowable number in a Virginia wilderness park, hunters will be allowed to cull the herd; but a West Virginia woman captured a very rare albino deer visiting her yard on film. Two Kansas motorcyclists were injured, one of them seriously, when a pair of deer jumped out into the road ahead of them; while a deer-motorcycle collision in Central Texas resulted in a man going to the hospital, and a woman dying at the scene. A New York Times article explores the deer-tick problem in microcosm: the island of Nantucket, Massachusetts. A coyote afflicted with mange will be put down by wildlife authorities in New Hampshire when they encounter it next; but an elusive cougar that had been prowling around a Seattle park was captured over the weekend and repatriated in the Cascade foothills. The plight of the Andean bear is recounted by the next article; however, a clever bear raided a freezer at a Colorado hotel lodge, outsmarting hotel workers! An Ontario, Canada, bow hunter is facing criminal charges after a wayward shaft aimed at a bear landed near a neighbor; while a Montana motorist had a close encounter of the furry kind! The limitations of animal control in a North Carolina community visited by black bears is discussed; but the value of GPS trackers in following the black bear population in Florida is explored by the next article. In the wake of a number of grizzly bear deaths in the Yellowstone National Park area, federal and state wildlife officials are discussing what to do about the situation. A number of counties in Ohio will be distributing rabies vaccine baits in the wild to reduce the number of rabid raccoons in that state; while a kitten in New Jersey that was bitten by a raccoon tested positive for rabies. Pet owners in Nebraska were reminded to keep rabies vaccinations current on their pets after a rabid skunk was found in a community there; and the next article, from Santa Cruz, California, discusses the phenomenon of adolescent skunks searching for new homes. A Colorado community is up in arms about skunks making their homes under houses in the area. And finally, cats of the world beware - a giant rat weighing 3.3 pounds has been found in New Guinea!

Release of hawk signals opening of Ventura Hillsides Festival

Utah town no longer hawk monitor

Hunters will aim to reduce deer numbers in Suffolk park

Albino Deer Spotted In Bethlehem Yard

Motorcycle-deer accident hurts two

Woman killed when motorcycle hits deer; attacker sought in North Austin stabbing

Tick-Borne Illnesses Have Nantucket Considering Some Deer-Based Solutions

Hampton marks increase in coyote sightings

Cougar caught in Seattle being released in wild

Hanging on, bearly

Bear Escapes From Hotel Lodge After Stealing Ice Cream

Man faces charges after slaying backyard bear with bow and arrow

Bear drops in on local woman's Glacier trip

Police investigate bear sightings

Bear trackers use GPS in bid to preserve the animals

Campaign Seeks to Stem Grizzly Bear Killings in Yellowstone Region

Raccoons to be fed vaccine for rabies

Mays Landing Kitten Tests Positive For Rabies

Rabid skunk in city draws attention to need for pet vaccinations

Skunk sightings increase as kits look for new homes

Time to raise a stink about skunks under houses

New giant rat species discovered