Wildlife in caches

[azog]

I just found a cache that had a teeny bunny rabbit nesting near it.

 

I didn't know what to do, but now I am thinking in hind-sight, perhaps I should have immeadiately left the cache?

 

But there was no way for me to know he was there until after I had uncovered the cache. I wasn't heavy handed, knowing I needed to put it back together the way I found it.

 

I opened the cache and logged the book, and put everything back. The bunny didn't move. He was alive, I saw his eyes and watched him breathe, but he was petrified and didn't move much. I did try to take special care not to poke or touch him.

 

What should I have done, or could have done, or should do in future cases like this?

[+Gigger]

The smell of humans had to be on that cache box already and the mother still chose to keep her baby there. As long as you did not disturb the nesting area and did not handle the bunny..He will just fine and the Mother will probably not act differently. However, if the cache is visited often, and noone actually handles the nesting materials and/or the bunny..she will choose to move it to a quieter location. All should be fine.

Ginger aka Gigger

[+Princess of Darkness]

A rabbits first instinct is to freeze. As long as you didn't approach it all is fine. Even if you did it would have left and all would still be fine. Don't sweat it...no harm done. In a couple of weeks it will be off making new bunnies.

 

The Princess of Darkness

[+chillas]

Consider yourself fortunate that it didn't decide to attack. That rabbit is dynamite! Death awaits you all with nasty, big, pointy teeth! Run away! Run away!

 

Ahem.

 

Sorry 'bout that.

[+Jamie Z]

Thanks Chillas.

 

Also, I don't feel that the rabbit was "petrified." I think the freezing behavior is simply a defense.

 

The rabbit probably wasn't happy about your presence... but animals are designed to defend themselves, and that's all this rabbit did. I don't think it actually had "fear."

 

Jamie

[+Parkland Trekkers]

We had a similar experience. As we were rummaging through a cache, we spotted a nest of baby raccoons about 4 feet from the cache. When you log your find, you may wish to mention your encounter with the baby rabbit on your log. This will alert future visitors to watch where they step, should they choose to visit that cache.

[azog]

My friend had a camera, so we took a picture of him:

 

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.asp?ID=3729

[+Gigger]

I just got an email from a friend who went caching on vacation with his father in Michigan. He attached a picture of a baby dear that was nesting not more than a few feet from the cache. He said he glanced over and saw it and it startled him at first not expecting to see a deer right there. The hurried up with the cache and went on there way the whole while it laid there very still...thinking it couldn't be seen.

the picture is adorable but I don't have a url to post it too right off hand.

Ginger

[+Gigger]

I just got an email from a friend who went caching on vacation with his father in Michigan. He attached a picture of a baby dear that was nesting not more than a few feet from the cache. He said he glanced over and saw it and it startled him at first not expecting to see a deer right there. The hurried up with the cache and went on there way the whole while it laid there very still...thinking it couldn't be seen.

the picture is adorable but I don't have a url to post it too right off hand.

Ginger

[+El Diablo]

You took a pic of it??? Now you have screwed up everything!! Just kidding. We should all be so lucky as to get a glimpse at the real world that we all take for granted. Great pic....makes you want to pick it up and love it for a little while. thanks for sharing!

 

El Diablo

 

Everything you do in life...will impact someone,for better or for worse.

[+El Diablo]

You took a pic of it??? Now you have screwed up everything!! Just kidding. We should all be so lucky as to get a glimpse at the real world that we all take for granted. Great pic....makes you want to pick it up and love it for a little while. thanks for sharing!

 

El Diablo

 

Everything you do in life...will impact someone,for better or for worse.

[+barondriver]

found a little green garter snake curled around the cache container..got a stick and encouraged him to let me have it..

 

[vinced]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Gigger:

I just got an email from a friend who went caching on vacation with his father in Michigan. He attached a picture of a baby dear that was nesting not more than a few feet from the cache. Ginger

---

 

Ginger,

The picture I'm using as my avatar is of my sister's dog being licked by a young deer sometime ago in the mountains of Va. while she and her husband where heading for a skiing location. Rocky, the dog, did not seem to mind the deer, he's actual very animal friendly.

 

Vinced

 

Vince

KD5NVO

0H/7F

[+Weedhopper]

I had a slightly different experience--a raccoon or something similar got into my cache and scattered the contents all over. There had been a container of Silly Putty in there, which a friend told me an animal might try to get at(??)Maybe he was right. From now on, no Silly Putty, even tho I still think it is a great cache item otherwise.

And nothing but watertight ammo boxes from now on--like to see a raccoon get into one of THOSE.

Never have seen wildlife in the close vicinity of a cache so far, but I think that's a strong piece of evidence that caches (and cachers) are generally environmentally friendly, and not harmful to the area--most cachers are fairly respectful, not typical tourists, and don't throw cigarette butts and soda bottles wherever they go, either.

[+majicman]

Farmer Elmer Fudd says that on his farm, he and all the little wabbits play a cute little game called, "All Wabbits Must DIE!"

 

He nails them up to the garage door by their wiggly little ears and then, skins 'dem alive...

 

Huuhhhhh, huhhhhhh...

 

--majicman

 

(Always trade UP in both quantity and quality and Geocaches will be both self-sustaining and self-improving!)

[+craggy (nightcrawler)]

I must be looking for the wrong caches, the best I can do is one little beetle. That did live to see the next cacher.

[+Parkland Trekkers]

Here is a sample of some native Florida wildlife:

 

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.asp?ID=15009

 

Not as cute as the bunny, I admit, but he didn't mind posing for the camera.

 

[This message was edited by Parkland Trekkers on July 08, 2002 at 04:59 PM.]

[GeoStars]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Parkland Trekkers:

Here is a sample of some native Florida wildlife:

---

 

We're heading to Florida in a couple of months and will certainly be looking for some geocaches. We also want to leave a travel bug to see if it can make it back home to Indiana. We have been a little concerned about "local wildlife" though. Turtles we can handle. Even big bugs and those dreaded snakes. It's the 'gators that concern us. Maybe it's just media sensationalism but when we see huge alligators winding up in people's back yard pools, it makes us a bit apprehensive about trekking off into the wildlands of Florida!

 

GeoMedic - team leader of GeoStars

[GeoStars]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Parkland Trekkers:

Here is a sample of some native Florida wildlife:

---

 

We're heading to Florida in a couple of months and will certainly be looking for some geocaches. We also want to leave a travel bug to see if it can make it back home to Indiana. We have been a little concerned about "local wildlife" though. Turtles we can handle. Even big bugs and those dreaded snakes. It's the 'gators that concern us. Maybe it's just media sensationalism but when we see huge alligators winding up in people's back yard pools, it makes us a bit apprehensive about trekking off into the wildlands of Florida!

 

GeoMedic - team leader of GeoStars

[+El Diablo]

I lived in Florida for most of my life. I have seen countless gators, but none ever close enough to pose a threat. They aren't like snakes...you aren't likely to step on one.

 

If you start treking the wilds of Florida...it's the snakes you need to worry about! There are 4 posinous snakes in North America, and all are in the state.

 

Tell Florida I said hi and I miss it!

 

El Diablo

 

Everything you do in life...will impact someone,for better or for worse.

[+GatoRx]

quote:

---

Originally posted by GeoStars:

 

We're heading to Florida in a couple of months and will certainly be looking for some geocaches. We also want to leave a travel bug to see if it can make it back home to Indiana. We have been a little concerned about "local wildlife" though. Turtles we can handle. Even big bugs and those dreaded snakes. It's the 'gators that concern us. Maybe it's just media sensationalism but when we see huge alligators winding up in people's back yard pools, it makes us a bit apprehensive about trekking off into the wildlands of Florida!

 

GeoMedic - team leader of GeoStars

---

 

I'm definitely more worried about the snakes here in FL than alligators - I've had several wind up on the back porch, including a water moccasin, but have never had a gator anywhere near my pool. Seriously though, keep one eye on the GPS, and the other on the ground, and you probably won't run into too much trouble.

I was introduced to a threat I'd never thought about in NE FL last Friday though - while out hunting a cache, a large boar, complete with big tusks, came splashing up a stream of stagnant water that the cache was next to. My group got real nervous when he came on shore just a few feet past us, but he seemed content to watch/ignore us from the trees on the shore. That situation could have turned ugly real quick, especially since our only means of defense was a couple of aluminum hiking staffs...

[+GatoRx]

quote:

---

Originally posted by GeoStars:

 

We're heading to Florida in a couple of months and will certainly be looking for some geocaches. We also want to leave a travel bug to see if it can make it back home to Indiana. We have been a little concerned about "local wildlife" though. Turtles we can handle. Even big bugs and those dreaded snakes. It's the 'gators that concern us. Maybe it's just media sensationalism but when we see huge alligators winding up in people's back yard pools, it makes us a bit apprehensive about trekking off into the wildlands of Florida!

 

GeoMedic - team leader of GeoStars

---

 

I'm definitely more worried about the snakes here in FL than alligators - I've had several wind up on the back porch, including a water moccasin, but have never had a gator anywhere near my pool. Seriously though, keep one eye on the GPS, and the other on the ground, and you probably won't run into too much trouble.

I was introduced to a threat I'd never thought about in NE FL last Friday though - while out hunting a cache, a large boar, complete with big tusks, came splashing up a stream of stagnant water that the cache was next to. My group got real nervous when he came on shore just a few feet past us, but he seemed content to watch/ignore us from the trees on the shore. That situation could have turned ugly real quick, especially since our only means of defense was a couple of aluminum hiking staffs...

[Lyra]

July 3rd, I headed out to the Smith Mountain Dam Overlook cache, which described a 1.5 mile hike over an inhospitable old mountain fire road. Looking at the GPS, I realized I was a mere 0.2 mils from it as the crow flies, and decided to bushwhack it. About halfway there, I heard the distintive rattle of a rattlesnake and decided the fire trail wasn't such a bad idea after all. At least it was wide enough that I'd have a visual of it before I stepped on it.

 

RSL

[+Strix]

Was looking for a cache recently along the length of a fallen tree when I saw an odd-looking mushroom. I got closer and reached for it (I like to identify mushrooms), and it moved!

 

It was a copperhead. Perfectly camouflaged in the leaves. First one I have ever seen "in the wild." (They are fairly shy and secretive.)

 

It was a more exciting find than the tupperware container full of McToys and religious pamphlets.

 

I "took a powder" ... and left it alone.

 

"When the chips are down, the buffalo are empty."

[+Strix]

Was looking for a cache recently along the length of a fallen tree when I saw an odd-looking mushroom. I got closer and reached for it (I like to identify mushrooms), and it moved!

 

It was a copperhead. Perfectly camouflaged in the leaves. First one I have ever seen "in the wild." (They are fairly shy and secretive.)

 

It was a more exciting find than the tupperware container full of McToys and religious pamphlets.

 

I "took a powder" ... and left it alone.

 

"When the chips are down, the buffalo are empty."