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How
do I get this snake out of my house or yard?
Only six of Florida's snakes species
are venomous, and most of the snakes you will see are
harmless. You may get a brochure on
Venomous
snakes (pdf)
or Non-poisonous
snakes (pdf).
Many people find a snake in the house bothersome.
Snakes may be removed from buildings with glue-boards
or funnel traps. The
Wildlife Resources
Handbook has more information. If you have a snake
in the yard, it is best managed by modifying the area
to make it less appealing to a snake, who may be looking
for mice or rodents. You may want to remove or
move brush piles, or wood piles away from your yard
or house. We have more information.
What
do I do when there is an alligator in my neighborhood?
In many cases, if left
unmolested, alligators eventually will retreat to more
preferred habitats away from people. However, if you
encounter an animal that poses a threat to human safety:
DON'T - swim outside of posted swimming areas
or in waters that might contain large alligators.
DO - swim with a partner within all marked swimming
areas. These areas are specifically situated and designed
to reduce potential alligator/human conflicts.
DON'T - swim at night or dusk when alligators
most actively feed.
DO - use ordinary common care. Swim during daylight
hours. Avoid areas with thick vegetation along shorelines;
these areas provide good natural habitat for larger
alligators.
DON'T - feed or entice alligators. Alligators
overcome their natural shyness and become accustomed
or attracted to humans when fed.
DO - inform others that feeding alligators is
a violation of state law and that by feeding alligators,
people create problems for others who want to use the
water for recreational purposes.
DON'T - throw fish scraps into the water or leave
trash on shore. Although you are not intentionally feeding
alligators, the end result can be the same.
DO - dispose of fish scraps in garbage cans situated
at most boat ramps or fish camps. DON'T - allow pets
to swim in water known to contain large alligators or
in designated swimming areas with humans. Dogs suffer
many more attacks than humans, probably because dogs
more closely resemble natural prey items of large alligators.
DO - swim your pets in areas not inhabited by
large alligators. Keep your pet away from areas of heavy
vegetation, and maintain your dog within command distance.
We have a separate page
on alligators, and the
Commissions document Living with Alligators, has more
information.
How
do I stop animals digging in my yard or raiding my trash?
One of the first things
is to determine
what animal
is digging holes .
If the animal is a
gopher tortoise, it
is a threatened species, and my only be removed
with a special permit. The best thing to do is live
with it and appreciate it as part of Florida.
One of the best way to
discourage wildlife from coming into yards is to
use tight fitting trash can lids, and never leave
cat or dog food out in dishes; always feed pets
and then remove excess food.
If the animal is a
raccoon it is typically not
digging in your yard, but may be a nuisance by getting
in trash, eating your crops, such as corn, or trying
to move into your house. If the animal is getting into
your trash, more secure trash cans can solve the problem.
Raccoons that are causing property damage may be live-trapped
without a permit from the Commission, but if the raccoon
is to be taken away from your property and released,
a permit is required. Relocating
wildlife is seldom biologically sound, the animal
often does not survive.
If the animal is an
opossum they may be attracted
to available food, such as garbage, pet food, or cultivated
fruits or vegetables. Garbage cans may be secured with
rubber straps, and pet food should be taken in for the
night.
If the animal is an
armadillo, water the area
where you want the armadillo to move to. Since they
require water, a nearby wet area will entice them away
from where they are bothering you. Armadillos may be
captured with live traps, but they may not be released
on public land. Relocating
wildlife is seldom biologically sound, the animal
often does not survive.
Pocket gophers
and
moles (pdf)
may also dig holes just below the surface and destroy
a lawn. The damage caused by moles is almost entirely
cosmetic. Although moles are often falsely accused of
eating the roots of grass and other plants, they actually
feed on the insects causing the damage. Nebraska has
a
guide for controlling moles.
What
can I do about the crane on my golf course or neighborhood?
The sandhill crane is usually
on the golf course due to the presence of ready food.
If you remove the food, such as mole crickets, then
the cranes will leave. You may contact a lawn service
for treatment of your yard or green. In some cases the
sandhill crane may be being fed corn, by a neighbor.
Open harassment of the crane is not allowed, since the
Florida subspecies is
threatened.
We have more information.
What
do I do when a bear is bothering my bee hives?
Florida Black Bear habitat
is also good habitat for honey bees. The best way to
prevent bear raids on apiaries is to surround the bee
yard with a well maintained electric fence. The
Wildlife Resource
Handbook has detailed plans . The Florida Fish and
Wildlife Commission will provide technical guidance
through their
regional offices, and the guide
Living with Bears
provides more information, as does our
Black Bear page.
Who
can I go to for trapping this troublesome animal?
First you should see if
the animal can be controlled before trapping. Often
cleaning up debris, maintaining a tight trash lid, or
removing food (for example for pets) can control the
animal. Relocating wildlife
is seldom biologically sound, the animal often does
not survive. The Commission maintains a list of licensed
trappers by region, that may be hired to trap nuisance
animals. In some counties and municipalities, animal
control officers are licensed to remove nuisance critters.
The Commission, through the
regional offices, also issues depredation permits
to people who have problems with wildlife destroying
agricultural crops. In some cases private individuals
can purchase or rent live traps. Care should be taken
in handling wild animals, as there may pose a threat
due to rabies or other diseases.
All fish and wildlife, including their nests, eggs and
young, are protected from wanton destruction. And, the
poisoning of wildlife is illegal because of its nondiscriminatory
method of killing. However, these restrictions don't
prohibit individuals from killing certain wildlife (exceptions
include but are not limited to deer, bear and those
listed as endangered, threatened or species of special
concern), on their property in the immediate vicinity
of the damage. Nuisance wildlife cannot, however, be
killed by gun and light, steel traps, or poison. In
addition, there are federal, state and municipal laws
regarding control measures against wildlife and transportation
of wildlife. Just to be sure, always check with local
code enforcement officials and the Commission's regional
office to determine legal methods.
What
can I do about these vultures tearing up my roof?
If the
vulture is not causing
any trouble, it need not be bothered. Both
Black vultures and
Turkey vultures
provide a valuable sanitation service by cleaning up
dead animals, and are appreciated by many people. If
however, the vulture is tearing up a screen porch, or
chewing up shingles or roofs, then you may want to consider
scaring them with Pyrotechnics. The Wildlife Services
group of the United States Department of Agriculture
at 352-377-5556 can provide more information.
There are birds
dive-bombing me, what should I do?
The most common cause for
attacks is that you simply got too close to the birds'
territory, nest or young. The most common diving bird
is the Northern
Mockingbird. Usually the best thing to do is back
off from the area during the nesting season. The extension
service offers
other suggestions.
If the bird is injured, it may be taken to a
rehabilitator.
Birds are protected under the
Federal Migratory
Treaty Act and may not be trapped or killed. Additionally
in Florida
least terns or black skimmers ,
threatened
and species of special concern respectively, may
be nesting on the roof and displaying aggression toward
people in the parking lot of your grocery store or mall.
These birds are protected and may not be trapped or
killed. Terns and other birds are protected under the
Federal Migratory
Bird Treaty Act so they may not be trapped or killed
on your property. All nongame species have specific
regulations which
should be reviewed. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
has a
pamphlet on Backyard Bird Problems.
There
is an animal living under my house, what should I do?
If you have an animal moving
in to your home, check here for a
list of suspects. Sometimes the animal may be excluded
by patching a hole when the animal is away, removing
brush, or removing sources of food. The animal may be
caught in a trap, but relocating
wildlife is seldom biologically sound, the animal
often does not survive, and a special relocation permit
is required to transport native wildlife. In Florida
we have the gray fox although
the red fox has been introduced
and is well established in Florida, particularly west
of the Apalachicola river. If the fox is in your yard
or area, solutions may include the use of sentry dogs
and bright flashing lights or a continuous bright light
after dark, when pets and small farm animals should
be confined. Other exclusionary methods include the
removal of brush from around the ranch or farmstead.
If an opossum has moved under
your house, they may be live trapped, using sardines
or cat food as effective bait. Once the animal is caught
however, another problem is created-- what to do with
it. In some cases, the soundest biological decision
is to humanely destroy the nuisance animal.
Skunks may be attracted to
lawns with many insects, where food scraps are kept,
or where there are brush piles, wood piles, and similar
sources of shelter. If you catch a skunk in a trap,
be careful to avoiding being sprayed. Slowly approach
the trapped skunk and cover the trap with a small tarp
or towel.
There is a bat in my house what should I do?
Excluding bats from roost
site is only effective solution. Exclusion is inadvisable
between April and August because flightless young bats
may be trapped inside and killed. Bats in general, provide
a useful function, by eating insects. We have
more information available online.
There is a woodpecker pecking on my siding, what should
I do?
In Florida woodpeckers
peck on siding for 3 main reasons:
1. "drumming" occurs during courtship to proclaim
their existence to mates during early spring. Often
this does little damage to the siding.
2. Feeding. Wood from trees is one of the sources
of insects that woodpeckers seek as food.
3. Nesting. Woodpeckers that utilize a building
for feeding or drumming may also try to nest there,
by hammering out a nesting hole.
Homeowners need to take early and persistent effort
to control woodpeckers, which includes
scaring the woodpeckers, perhaps with high pressure
water hoses or mounting models of snakes or owls at
problem sites, excluding the woodpecker from the surface
with plastic or nylon netting. Repellents are generally
of limited value. We have
more information online. Woodpeckers are protected
under the Federal
Migratory Bird Treaty Act and state law so they
may not be trapped or killed on your property.
There is an otter eating goldfish in my pond, what should
I do?
Our Florida otter is the
river otter, and will often find stocked ponds. The
best way to control the otter is to exclude the otter
from pond with fencing or a cover. This will also prevent
other animals such as raccoons, or some birds from finding
the goldfish, which are an easy prey item for many species.
We have more information.
What should I do about squirrels chewing plastic piping,
wiring, or shingles?
Squirrels can cause problems
by chewing on both edible and inedible things. It is
often impossible or impractical to eliminate the source
of their chewing. If squirrels are attacking potted
plants, you might be able to move them out of reach;
if they are gnawing on pipe or tubing, it may be possible
to cover it with a material that is soft and, therefore,
less attractive to chew. Homeowners frequently attempt
to solve squirrel-chewing problems by using some type
of repellent. As a rule, repellents are very ineffective
in solving this type of problem. Visual repellents such
as owl or snake decoys quickly are accepted by squirrels
for what they really are and they are then ignored.
Mothballs and other odor repellents also are usually
ignored by squirrels and rarely change their pattern
of behavior. One possible exception is taste repellents.
Taste repellents are designed to stop chewing. They
seem to work in direct proportion to the animal's desire
to chew on the object. In other words, if they want
it badly enough, no repellent will stop them. But if
the object is not too desirable, it will often work.
Taste repellents will not work on large areas, are impractical
for inaccessible things like tall trees and cannot be
used on objects that you intend to eat. For those situations,
you likely will need to live-trap the problem squirrel.
We have more squirrel information
online.
What should I do with a baby bird or animal?
Generally if you find a
baby animal it is best to leave it alone. Often
the animal is not orphaned, and the parent may be out
bringing food for the animal, or watching the baby.
Never pick up baby animals and remove them from
their natural environment! Handling of wildlife causes
great stress. Leave wildlife alone - never pick up animals
and play with them or try to feed them! This is harmful
to the animal, and many times dangerous to you! Additional
information on
orphaned animals
is available from the Wildlife Resources Handbook.
Can the Commission come and remove this muscovy duck?
Muscovy ducks are a non-native
duck, that may be a nuisance by reducing water quality,
or dig nesting burrows in shrubbery. The Commission
does not come and remove these. The best approach to
them is to stop feeding them. Flock size may partially
controlled, by removing some eggs from the nest, shaking
them vigorously, and then returning them to the nest.
Relocating and releasing non-native species like the
muscovy is illegal. From the Wildlife Resources Handbook
a one page
fact sheet , is available, as well as a
Guide to domestic
ducks in urban areas .
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