Uncommon Owl Recovering In Our Care

An owl that's uncommon in Ohio is in rehabilitation at Lake Erie Nature & Science Center after suffering a fractured scapula, or shoulder bone. We put the Saw-whet owl in a body wrap to stabilize the shoulder and used steroids to reduce swelling. The bones of these owls heal very quickly, so the wrap was only on for a matter of days. As is always the case with patients in the Kenneth A. Scott Wildlife Education & Rehabilitation Program, our goal is to release the owl back into the wild soon. The owl has already been moved into our largest flight cage and is doing well.

Saw-whet Owls are small, brown with white spots and dark streaks with intense yellow eyes and a dark beak. Although they’re not very common in Northeast Ohio, when Saw-whet Owls are found here they are almost always in evergreen trees. The name Saw-whet comes from the “skiew” sound it makes, which is thought to mimic the sound of a saw being “whetted” or sharpened. This little creature would be hard to spot in the wild since it’s entirely nocturnal, spending the day roosting in dense foliage.
-Wildlife Rehabilitation Specialist Amy LeMonds

Drop In Today for St. Pat's, Buzzards & Stars

You can add some St. Patty's Day or Buzzards Day flavor to your Lake Erie Nature & Science Center visit today (3/14/09) as we present a pair of programs that require no advance registration.
First up, Amy Leamon and Maggie Watson will have activities for all ages out in the Log Cabin for a St. Patty's Day-themed Drop In & Discover program. Stop by any time between 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. but please keep in mind that space in the Log Cabin is limited and we’ll take visitors on a first-come, first-served basis. There is a $3 fee per child.

At 3 p.m., with the help of “Vern,” our live Turkey Vulture, we'll explore this strange bird's behaviors, including vomiting, bed-wetting and even nose-picking. We'll reveal all the misconceptions and fascinating truths about this commonly misunderstood animal, just in time for Sunday's Buzzard Day in Hinckley. Director of Wildlife, Dave Wolf, will also explain how Turkey Vulture's suddenly changed ancestors during this FREE, family friendly, Meet An Animal program.
And, as always, we'll have a full line-up of public planetarium shows starting with Twinkle Tots at 11 a.m. up through Monthly Skyquest at 2 p.m.

T-shirt Art Finalists Announced

Lake Erie Nature & Science Center is proud to announce 14 finalists in our 2009 Limited Edition T-shirt Art Design Contest. We received more than 65 wonderful and creative entries from children as young as 5 all the way up to adults. Our finalists were chosen to represent various ages, artistic experience and styles.
Now it's time for YOU to weigh with your favorites. Start by viewing the finalists in our online Kids Corner Nature Art Gallery. Then, you can vote for you favorite by leaving a comment here, using the contact form on our homepage, or by stopping by to drop a ballot in the box at Lake Erie Nature & Science Center starting Monday, March 16.
Each of our finalists will receive a pair of Walter R Schuele Planetarium passes good for any one star show, laser lights or film fest admission. The winner, who will be announced after voting ends on March 31st, will recieve $100 and a copy of the t-shirt featuring their winning design.
Thanks to everyone who entered! Good luck to all our finalists.

What's Up With Bald Squirrels?

We’ve had quite a few people calling our Wildlife Education & Rehabilitation Program to report that they’re seeing bald squirrels this spring. They want to know what's up? These are usually squirrels which are suffering from a condition called mange. This condition is caused by an external parasite, in this case, a type of mite. It can cause itching and hair loss on some or even most of the squirrel’s body.
The good news is that it is rarely fatal and if left alone, most all squirrels will recover from it. There is no effective treatment for a squirrel in the wild and capturing one of these squirrels will usually cause more harm than help. If the squirrel is healthy in every other way and has a cozy winter shelter to sleep in, even a hairless squirrel can survive our Ohio winters. If the animal becomes ill enough that it’s unable to run and can easily be captured, it can be brought in to us for treatment in captivity. -Dave Wolf, Director of Wildlife
(Photo credit: James Marvin Phelps, JMP Photography LLC, Michigan http://www.flickr.com/photos/mandj98/349107973/)

Red Bats Fascinate At Staff Training

Our wildlife staff knows a lot more about Red Bats, Burying Beetles, Honeybees, Smooth and Rough Green Snakes, and two colorful songbirds, the Cerulean Warbler and the Indigo Bunting thanks to a recent trip to Columbus to attend the Ohio Division of Wildlife’s “Wildlife Diversity Conference.”
Some of the most fascinating information we gleaned from the conference presentations concerned Red Bats.We learned that recent studies have shown that Red Bats, one of the 6 common Northern Ohio Bats, can hibernate in winter simply hanging from a tree branch camouflaged like a dead oak leaf. Even more surprising, some of them will hibernate buried in dead leaves on the ground, even under snow which actually helps insulate them from the frigid winter temperatures.
The Wildlife Diversity Conference offers a tremendous opportunity for us to learn the latest animal data from experts currently studying specific species. In addition to all the featured animal presentations, we also heard about the benefit of Ecotourism and how that relates to appreciation and enjoyment of Nature, even right here in Northern Ohio.
It’s amazing that there is so much humans still don’t know about Nature and abundant opportunities for us to continue to learning. The wildlife staff at Lake Erie Nature & Science Center is proud to be continually increasing our knowledge to better educate and inspire all those who seek our services. - Dave Wolf, Director of Wildlife

The Lesson of 2 Baby Box Turtles

Two tiny Eastern Box Turtles in Lake Erie Nature & Science Center's rehab care are a great illustration of why you should never interfere with nature without calling an expert (like us) first. Last August, these cool little turtles that are smaller than a silver dollar, were “saved” by a well-meaning animal lover who thought they couldn’t survive outside in the Northeast Ohio winter. The problem is, they didn’t need “saving.” If they had been left in the wild, they would have gradually acclimated to the cooling temperatures. Now, after their long winter indoors in climate-controlled conditions, we need to wait until spring to let them go.
We are heading into spring baby season, when many of you may stumble upon wild animal babies. Our advice is always to call before you touch! Often these babies are not orphaned and their mothers will return if left alone. Almost all baby birds found hopping around on the ground are simply “fledgling” birds that are supposed to be out of the nest but not yet flighted. If you’d like to know more about baby wildlife, download our flier on the topic.
-Amy LeMonds, Wildlife Rehabilitation Specialist

West Shore Sun Double Feature

Our spruced up Critter Corner made the front page of today's West Shore Sun News. Reporter Alison Meaney wrote an article on the Bay Village Kiwanis Club donation that funded the purchase of new activities for our indoor play area. The story features a photo of a smiling Robby Hussey enjoying our new puppet theater, with two more photos on the jump page.
Alison also interviewed our Wildlife Director, Dave Wolf, for a second front page feature story about the increased sightings of Bald Eagles in Bay Village. As the article says, if you're not lucky enough to see one of these magnificent, resurgent creatures in the wild, you can stop by and see the former rehab patient that's a resident of Lake Erie Nature & Science Center.
Update at 3:30 p.m. - Dave was interviewed for a WKYC-TV, Channel 3 news story on eagles that should be on tonight.

Summer Camp Registration Update

Our Summer Camp registration for members kicked off over the weekend and we already have some camps that are full and taking waiting lists. Not to worry! There are still many great options to choose from in our Summer Program Guide. Members-only registration continues until Tuesday, March 10 at 10 a.m. when non-members can begin signing up as well. Watch the Education/Summer Camp listings on our website for updates on wait-listed camps and classes.
The following is a list of the summer camps that are now wait listing:

• Nature Nuts - Session I - Tuesday AM
• Nature Nuts - Session II - Tuesday AM, Wednesday AM and Thursday AM
• Log Cabin Kindercamp- Curious Creekers AM