Mother Knows Best: Naturalist Notes
Mother knows best. That is some sound advice to keep in mind if you go exploring and are fortunate to see a baby wild animal. Wild animals are great parents, even if they raise their young differently than humans do. Animals have lots of different strategies for raising their offspring which may include leaving their young alone for most of the day. Let’s take a closer look at a few common animals…
White-tail fawn. Photo credit: https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/managing-resources/wildlife/keep-wild.
White-tailed deer offspring, or fawns, are born between May and July. Born with spots to camouflage and being scentless keeps them safe from predators. This is why the doe spends very little time with her fawn. White-tailed deer moms will leave the fawn in various hiding places for long periods of time, only returning several times a day to nurse. It is common for the doe to hide her baby near homes because being around humans means fewer predators. At about four weeks old the fawn will start following their mother around, and at two months they are fully weaned and able to forage on their own.
Eastern cottontail kits. Photo credit: Ali Posner.
Eastern cottontail rabbits are a common sight even in urban areas in Michigan. Cottontails have their litters any time starting in March and through September. The young are born without hair, eyes closed and ears laid back. They are dependent on their mother for about two weeks. Just like deer, cottontail moms only visit for quick feedings. The young, or kits, are able to leave their mother at about three weeks old even though they are only about 4-5 inches long.
Barn swallow fledglings. Photo credit: https://www.michiganaudubon.org/i-found-a-baby-animal-what-should-i-do-next/.
Finding a bird’s nest is always exciting. It is not uncommon to find a baby bird on the ground. If you find a young bird on the ground that is featherless, it is important to put it back into the nest by gently picking up the bird and placing it inside. Don’t worry about your scent because most birds do not have a sense of smell. If you can’t reach the nest, fashion a makeshift one, and attach it to the tree under the nest with the baby in it with some nesting material. If you find a young bird that is feathered on the ground, it is a fledgling, meaning it has left the nest on purpose and it is learning to fly.
Wildlife parents are very devoted to their young and rarely abandon them. Remember many species are raised by only one parent and they cannot be in two places at once. This means that baby wildlife must be left alone several times during the day or even the majority of the time while the parent ventures off to find food for themselves and their young. Unless something seems amiss, keep your distance and leave them alone. If you think there is something wrong please call a local rehabilitator. The list can be found at https://www2.dnr.state.mi.us/dlr/. These people are trained and have the skills to care for the animals. Well-intended people can often cause more harm than good because they don’t know the proper ways to care for wild animals. The best thing you can do is let nature take its course and let wild animals stay wild.
Submitted by Cathy Wesley, Naturalist, May 2022