First Baby Squirrels — Respect the Nest
Meet our first baby squirrel of 2021! This young Eastern Fox Squirrel is less than four weeks old.
Baby Season Has Begun!
If you'll recall, last autumn our Wildlife Hospital was flooded with baby squirrels. Apparently food supplies were robust in 2020, and many squirrels had a second brood.
Our Squirrel Foster Care Team leader calculated that we only had 47 days out of the last 365 without a baby squirrel needing care at WildCare!
This baby fell from her nest and then was caught by a cat. You can see the small wound on her thigh from the cat's teeth or claws.
Although this baby squirrel doesn't appear to have been the victim of a tree-trimming or gardening accident, so many baby animals admitted to WildCare are.
For this reason WildCare is very pleased to introduce our Respect the Nest campaign!
Nationally-renowned artist Michael Schwab created the Respect the Nest graphic to the left to help us spread the word that March through October are nesting season in the San Francisco Bay Area!
These are the primary months for baby wildlife, but actually Eastern Fox Squirrels and Anna's Hummingbirds can nest as early as January. For this reason our Respect the Nest campaign encourages nest awareness year-round.
Respect the Nest Webinar March 9, 2021
We invite the public to join us for a free, informative Respect the Nest webinar presentation on Tuesday, March 9 at 6pm (Pacific Standard Time.)
Presenters will include Melanie Piazza, Director of Animal Care at WildCare, Jim Cairnes, Arborist at Small World Tree Company, and Alison Hermance, Director of Communications at WildCare.
Attendees will learn:
- What animals may be using your trees and shrubs as a nursery... even as you read this!
- What to do if you inadvertently cut down a nest or if you find an
injured animal. - How to tell if there are active nests in your yard.
- When it's safe (and better for your trees) to prune and trim.
- How WildCare cares for baby animals orphaned by tree trimming.
The presentation will feature information about our wildlife neighbors, and behind-the-scenes videos and information about how orphaned baby birds and squirrels are cared for in WildCare’s Wildlife Hospital.