Have you heard the one about the fox that shot a hunter in Belarus? According to a story published by Reuters, an “unnamed hunter” wounded a fox, then a scuffle occurred when he tried to finish off the animal with his rifle butt. The fox resisted and pulled the trigger, shooting the man in the leg. Red flag: The fox escaped, and there were no witnesses.
Hmm. What are the chances the hunter was simply embarrassed about shooting himself in the foot so blamed the poor critter? In other words, don’t believe everything you read.
Another story making Internet rounds on a regular basis is the one about bald eagle “rebirth” explaining that after 30 years an eagle sheds not just its feathers, but its beak and talons, which will take six months to grow back. Gee, I wonder how it will survive if it can’t fly, hunt or eat food for half a year?
Some start out as a joke on late night television, then morph into true stories. Or misinformation can accumulate in the re-telling of a story, as in “a friend of my third cousin’s neighbor’s dog walker” swears it really happened.
And in case you think these are obviously urban legends, can you tell which of these very common “truths” are not really true?
No. 1: A mother bird will abandon her babies if you touch them.
No. 2: Opossums hang by their tails.
No. 3: Porcupines can throw their quills.
No. 4: Lemmings commit suicide by flinging themselves over a cliff.
No. 5: California law requires a hunting license before you can set mousetraps.
Answer: They’re all false. Even though you may see photos of baby opossums hanging from a branch by their tail, they would only do so for a few seconds, and adults cannot hold their weight in that manner.
Who knows? The next urban legend might be this tale of a strange “aquatic opossum”: The Wildlife Education and Rehabilitation Center received a phone call from a person who saw an unusual critter swimming in her toilet. The family was renovating their house, leaving lots of openings for wildlife to enter at night. Most likely the poor thing was getting a drink of water and fell in. However, this explanation didn’t satisfy the person, who still vehemently insisted it was a new species that lived in the sewers. When the animal was brought to WERC, it was confirmed to be a well-known-to-scientists Virginia opossum and still the person didn’t believe us!
The point of the story is that while the Internet is an amazing source of information, you should be a little skeptical about what you read. For example, if you find a baby bird on the ground and are wondering what to do, an Internet search will bring up numerous reputable wildlife rehabilitation websites that advise the finder on how to determine whether to return the baby to the nest or bring it to a rehabilitator. They will also advise never to feed the baby and that it’s illegal to raise a native wild bird.
However, there are also disreputable sites that offer faulty “facts,” as WERC has heard from people who have brought in newborn and fledgling birds and told us they fed—according to their online research—earthworms, soaked raisins, spaghetti, bread, raw hamburger and Cream of Wheat.
It’s vitally important to the health of the animal to know not only the specific diets of each species, but also their feeding behavior and the dietary changes required as the bird matures. Swallows eat insects “on the wing,” young raptors must learn how to hunt rodents and herons eat live fish. Some eat particular kinds of seeds, nuts, berries and fruit; some birds are strictly carnivorous; some are omnivorous. It’s a common misconception that all birds eat worms. But if the baby bird is a seed-eater, worms can be toxic.
Use the Internet properly when you find an orphaned or injured wild animal: Find your local licensed wildlife rehabilitator.
The Wildlife Education and Rehabilitation Center is supported solely by donations. To contact WERC, call (408) 779-9372 or visit www.werc-ca.org.
