Nina Miller of the Darien Nature Center said that with the warmer weather, we can expect to start seeing baby birds and squirrels around. Residents should start filling up their birdfeeders and birdbaths now, she said.
"People don't realize how important the water in birdbaths is to the birds," Miller said. She said many geese die of dehydration because everything is frozen. Miller said baby squirrels are born in early March. Last year, she adopted five baby squirrels after a bad storm knocked over a tree and left them stranded. Two died, but she took care of the others before releasing them back in the wild.
"People would ask me why I'm taking care of squirrels, they're so annoying. Well, what's the No. 1 type of road kill you see? Squirrels," said Miller, a licensed animal rehabilitator in Connecticut. She said that animals nursed back to health have no problems surviving in the wild. "They have these skills innately, as long as you feed them food they will want to eat."
Resident who find a baby animal or bird can help, she said.
"The main thing to do, rather than try and pick up an injured animal, is to try and reconnect it with its mother," Miller said. If you find a baby bird, you should try and locate the nest. If you can't do that, put it in a shoebox with leaves, grass and twigs and tack it in a tree where dogs and cats won't be able to reach it.
"Very likely the baby will call out for its mother, and the mother will find it," Miller said.
She said snapping turtles and snakes will also begin reappearing soon. She said the animals are prepared to survive even if there is another cold snap.
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