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Show Wildlife babies lost SALT LAKE CITY -Each spring many wildlife babies are lost to human "predation". Wildlife disturbed or taken from their natural environment rarely survive. Even well-intending humans often do more harm than good. A supposedly abandoned wildlife newborn usually has a concerned mother not far away. For example, after a fawn is born, the doe will leave her baby in a sheltered place while she grazes some distance away. The doe returns only twice a day to feed the fawn. A fawn only a few days old is still very scraggly and scrawny and has a difficult dif-ficult time walking. However, this does not indicate abandonement. "Taking baby animals from the wild is against the law. You're likely to end up with a citation," explains LaVar Ware, information officer for the Division of Wildlife Resources of the Utah Department of Resources and Energy. Bob Walters, Wildlife Resources nongame biologist, advises that baby birds found on the ground should be returned to the nest. "Parents birds are quite frantic about getting get-ting their young back," says Walters, "They will often re-accept their young even after being handled by human hands." Disturbing waterfowl nesting areas may cause ducks and geese to abandon their young or allow predators to move in more easily, says Tim Provan Wildlife Resources waterfowl biologist. Even approaching ap-proaching a goose nest may cause geese to abandon their eggs. When persons walk to a nest, they are leaving a perfect trail for predators to follow later. California gulls may also see the trails from the air and dive in for a helpless baby. When visiting waterfowl water-fowl management areas and taking walks along the dikes, persons are advised to keep moving. If waterfowl broods seek refuge in the water when people are close by, these birds should be allowed to return to dry ground as soon as possible. Young ducklings or goslings forced to stay in the water too long, especially on a windy day, may become water soaked and not survive. 1 |