Loading...
July 20, 1989 - Leave Wildlife in the Wild88 Focus on Nature CENTRAL VACUUM I Leave Wildlife in the Wild SYSTEMS SaleslInstallation Service New & Existing Homes East End Centro Vac., Inc. Wholesale Parts Distributor 283-4917 Free Estimates Pt Q Hot 212- 936 -0440 516- 283 -4600 516- 287A000 (Limousines & Car Rentals) • Luxury Motor Coach Service • Charters & Special Events • Limousines • Car Rentals �� 9RL'5�� .7Ullbi1l7I11jJLr .�, Chimney Sweeps ✓S7' ASN and Repair 283 -5333 Screens & Caps Installed EVERY WEDNESDAY EVENING DY)_ Complete Prime Rib Dinner $12.95 EVERY THURSDAY EVENING Lobster in a Sack Complete Dinner Includes[ lb. Lobster, Mussels, ClanTs& Corn on the Cob $14.95 Piano Entertainment Every Friday & Saturday Evenings Catering for All Occasions Call for Information 728 -7254 Montauk Highway (Rt. 27), Hampton Bays o 1/2Mileswestof ar2al Open Daily for Lunch 11:30 AM & Dinner 5 PM • Sunday Brunch 12 -3 PM Your Host & Hostess Joe & Linda Remember: Justin's Poop Deck South —A Touch of Elegance at Casual Prices By Paul Stoutenburgh Each year about this time my phone starts to jingle about lost or abandoned wildlife. Whether it's a baby robin or a baby rabbit, the answer is always the same from me: "Leave it alone. The mother will eventually find it." It's most gratifying to see that people are sensitive to the plight of wildlife, but here is one case where doing nothing is the best re- medy. Of course, there's always the excep- tion when the mother bird or animal has been killed by a car or some other misfortune, but 99 percent of the time the lost or abandoned animal or bird has just become obvious to us and we interpret this "find" as something more than it is. Then there is the case where a baby bird falls from the nest before its wings are strong enough for it to fly, and here the solution is just to put it back. If it continues to fall from the nest after one or two returns then I'd say just put it off to the side in a bush and hope that the parent bird will take care of it. Trying to feed and rear a small bird or an- imal can be a real task, as I well know. Our family fed baby rabbits, raccoons, squirrels, opossums and birds of all sorts that were brought to us and can vouch for the tedious process involved. It's not a case of feeding them whenever you think of it. Oh no, it's a routine that will keep you busy from dawn to dusk and then with only a small chance of success. If you are successful, you then have the added burden of acclimating the bird or animal to the wild, for it is against the law to keep any wildlife in captivity. This might seem rather harsh but it's the only true and humane way to treat wildlife. They were meant to be free, not caged or kept in a box the rest of their lives. Leave Young for Parents to Care For Let's suppose for the sake of argument that you got the right formula and vitamins to feed the baby rabbit and that you were a de- dicated person who overcame the temptation to quit feeding and the rabbit is now perky and healthy. What now? Do you just turn it loose without any thought of how it will feed itself or protect itself from predators? This is why the best solution to take when you come across a baby of any sort in the wild is to leave it alone or, at most, move it to a safe place in or near a bush where the par- ent will be able to find it. DOWSST,10WILB, 0000UNTRY111111 SPBNB A NIGHT ON THE NEW FRONTIER ROUND -UP YOUR FRIENDS, COME DRESSED FOR AT THE WEST AND JOIN US FOR A NIGHT OF... THE PARRISH ART MUSEUM'S RED HOT MUSIC!!! BENEFIT DINNER -DANCE PARTY The surreal McCoys SATURDAY, AUGUST 5TH HIGH STIPPIN' BANCI!!! 8 PM 'TILL I AM Pat Cannon's Foot & Fiddle Dance Company The Parrish Art Museum is mighty grateful to the following ... Blooming- TBS-MBR VITTLIS!!I dales; South Fork Asphalt Corp.; Suffolk County National Bank; Franken- Appetizers courtesy of The Little Rock Rodeo, bach's Deerfield Nursery, Inc.; Mayo Motors, Inc.; Hampton Anesthesia; Hampton Eye Physicians & Surgeons; and Revco Electrical Supply. Gifts for the evening are courtesy of: An Anonymous Donor, Cheyenne Social Club, Chwatsky's Department Store, The Cowgirl Hall of Fame, Distant Origin ( Bridgehampton), East Hampton Leather, English Country Antiques ( Bridgehampton), The Falcon Restaurant, The Fickle Pickle Florist, Hampton Housewares (Water Mill), Mark Humphrey Galleries, Le Sportsac, Levi - Strauss, Co., Panache Catering (Southampton), Polo Ralph Lauren Corpora- tion, Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., Ross North Fork Restaurant, The Southampton Inn, Springs Industries, Water Mill Wines & Spirits, Western Images Gal- lery (New York), Whiskey Dust, Workman Publishing, Zona (New York) "Cowboys Going to Dinner," Mara County, New Mexico, ra. 1897 Courtesy Museum of New Mexico. East Hampton Dinner & Dessert catered by Special Events, Inc. FIRIWATBR!!! Sol Mexican Beer provided by Cedar Beverages, Inc. Simpatico Beer provided by Midway Beverage, Corp. Pepsi products provided by Meadowbrook Distributing Cuervo Tequila provided by Hueblein, Inc. Proceeds to benefit the educational programs of The Parrish Art Museum 25 Job's Lane, Southampton Tickets $100 • Call 283.2118 THE SOUTHAMPTON PRESS / JULY 20, 1989 The old wives' tale that if you touch a baby bird or animal the mother will not come near it is hogwash. It was put forth for the very reason I've suggested —in order to encour- age you to leave the young of wildlife alone. It's the best way to handle the situation. Your helping a baby bird from off the lawn where a cat might gel it to a nearby bush won't pre- vent the mother from finding it and feeding it. The cry of its offspring will soon get the attention of the parent bird, bringing help. Our baby chicks let out a cry when they roam too far from the mother hen and it always brings her back to collect them in a short time. Nature sometimes can be cruel in our eyes The old wives tole that if you touch a baby bird or animal the mother will not come near it is hogwash. It was put forth to encourage you to leave the young of wildlife alone. but it has a built -in solution. A robin or spar- row does not have a single offspring, it has three or four so that if one or two are lost dur- ing the hectic days of fledging some will sur- vive. It's also rather hard to accept that even na- ture is not perfect and sometimes produces defective young. When this happens in the natural world these imperfect creatures are just cast aside. Occasionally we see one of these misfits but do not recognize its abnor- mality and want to save it. I know it sounds cruel but the natural world says let the de- fective go under now for later, on its own, it would surely never make it. The extra time and energy that would have gone into taking care of the imperfect would be wasted and taken away from the healthy who, after all, are the ones nature has designed to carry on the species. "Abandoned" Deer Returned This whole scenario can be repeated with the young of much larger creatures than ro- bins and rabbits. A week ago a good friend of mine told me of someone who tried to take care of an "abandoned" baby deer. Now if there is anything that the natural world has produced that is more adorable than a baby deer I don't know it. We have all followed Bambi t1i our own children and Eambi has probably made more people aware of the beauty and charm of wildlife than any other animal. Nevertheless, the story is still the same. "Leave it where you found it." That was hard for these unknowing people, who had already brought the "darling little Ban i" home, to understand. What they didn't know was that they had actually done the little one more harm by bringing it home than if they had left it alone. It literally took hours of talking to persuade them that it be- longed back where it was found. The deer was returned and hopefully has made it by now. Let's take the case above and suppose that it had been kept at home and fed. A special formula of milk would have had to be pre- pared with all the necessary nutrients. Then, if all went well, and the animal lived, it would have been "imprinted" to the one who took care of it. Not knowing how to take care of itself in the wild it could not be let go so it would have to be taken to some place where it would live out the rest of its life in an en- closure. Not too nice an outlook I'd say for something so beautiful as a deer that loves to roam free. You know I'm a great believer in getting our young folks acquainted with the wonder- ful world around them but I'd never give a youngster a baby bird or animal to take care of because only disaster can come from such misguided intentions. Sure it's fine to show them a baby rabbit or turtle, but then let it go so nature's ways can take over. That les- son alone is worthwhile for all. Parents of wildlife do not abandon healthy young. Edward LaBounty of Stony Brook behind the wheel of his 1913 While motorcar. Jerry Daly and his son, Sean, both of Bridgehampton polish the chrome on a two-tone 1931 Packard. — Douglas Love Photos Wheels Keep Turning (Continued from Page BI) ogue school system, said he has a total of six Packards, including a powerful 12- cylinder model built in 1939. Almost as an after- thought, he mentions that he also owns one Cadillac, built in 1929. A conversation with Mr. Bonatf about the close-knit, family atmosphere that prevafls among club members and owners of antique cars throughout the United States came to an abrupt halt when Bridgehampton resident Jerry Daly, the proprietor of Bobby Van's re- staurant, pulled in with his own two -tone 1930 Packard. The car immediately attracts at- tention from observers with its unusual green and buff paint and the carefully maintained varnished wooden wheels. "See those ?" Mr. Bonati said of the wheels. "They were an option back then that cost an- other $240. They were usually painted to match the color of the car," he added, be- cause they were easier to maintain that way. "A lot of people didn't even have heaters in cars back then," Mr. Bonati continued, ad- ding that a heater was a $30 option in his $1,1901937 Packard. "Most people just didn't go for them. They said, 'Ah, Martha, we'll use a blanket.' They kept a wooden stick in. the car just to scrape the ice off the wind- shield in the winter." CHAIR CANING 3 Day Service Deliver Work All arms t0 YeIIOW — Guaranteed See Jerry DoWOnly or iry Low Prices for Splint & Rush\ Hampton Antiques 116 No. Sea Rd., Southampton Open 12 -5 Daily 283.3436 Near Woods And Poole LAWN*DOC of the Hamptons Quality Lawn Care at Affordable Prices • Thorough • Dependable • Professional FREE ESTIMATES Serving the Eost End for 13 yrs. New York State Licensed Residential 653 -4667 Estate Quogue, New York