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Wildlife
conflict
Tips for Avoiding Conflict with
Wildlife in the City
Dec. Jan. Feb. 2014-2015
Discover Aurora’s True Nature
Respect
Remember to respect the WILD in wildlife. Many potentially harmful
interactions with wildlife occur because people fail to respect and leave wild
animals alone.
• Do not attempt to harass, harm, corner, capture, or tame wild animals.
• Do not intentionally feed wild animals.
• Do not handle wildlife that appears to be sick or injured.
• Do not allow pets to play with or harass wildlife.
• Take steps to secure potential, but unintentional, food sources such as
rubbish, compost, pet food and water, birdbaths or bird feeders.
Aurora Naturalist Program Calendar
Photo By Kevin Holiday
Colfax Ave.
Morrison
Nature
Center
Smith Road
Don’t wait for wildlife to get comfortable in your yard or in your home. If you
are experiencing elevated conflict, the best response is an immediate one.
• Temporarily remove attractants such as water, bird feeders or fallen fruit.
• Temporarily remove access to easy shelter or hiding places such as brush
piles. Trim dense landscaping up and away from the ground.
• Temporarily lock or secure pet doors at night.
• Install motion-activated lighting, temporary lighting or noisemakers such as
a radio set to play on a talk station.
• Temporarily place scent deterrents such as ammonia soaked rags,
mothballs enclosed in a stocking, citronella or cayenne pepper in the area.
• Haze (shout or clap your hands with the intent to scare off) coyotes and
foxes out of your yard. Do not tolerate or encourage wildlife loitering on
your property.
• If a wild animal is stuck in a window well or dumpster, carefully place
a long, wide and rough plank at an angle extending from the base of
the well or dumpster to the lip, then leave the area. This may allow the
animal to safely climb out on its own. Remove the plank once the animal
has left the area
Chambers Rd.
Respond
Airport Blvd.
Simple and inexpensive preventive measures can save time and money.
Inspect your yard and home for potential wildlife trouble spots and correct
them before they become an issue.
• Cover window wells with commercially available grates or bubbles or DIY
using hardware cloth or chicken wire.
• Monitor and close holes around and under foundations, decks and patios,
so animals are not tempted to move in.
• Secure rubbish in a metal or plastic container. Secure lids with a bungee
cord or heavy rock. If possible, store trash in a shed or garage. Wait
until the morning of trash pick-up day to curb your trash.
• Keep pet food and water indoors. Store pet food in secure containers. Do
not store pet food near a pet door with outdoor (wild animal) access.
• To avoid pet conflict, supervise pets in yards where coyotes, foxes,
raccoons and skunks have been observed.
• Screen fireplace chimneys and vents (be sure to consider all fire and safety
hazards for this step). Immediately repair attic holes.
• Seal foundation, fascia and soffit cracks larger than one-quarter inch.
Morrison Nature Center at Star K Ranch
16002 East Smith Road
Aurora, CO 80011
303-326-8445 • auroragov.org/nature
Secure
Aurora Naturalist
Public Program Calendar
Morrison Nature Center at Star K Ranch
16002 E. Smith Rd. | Aurora, CO 80011 | 303-326-8445
City of Aurora
Parks, Recreation & Open Space (PROS)
The Quality of Life Department
COYOTE
call
Morrison Nature Center at Star K Ranch | 16002 E. Smith Rd. | Aurora | 303-326-8445 | auroragov.org/nature
Hours: Wed.-Fri. 12-4:30 p.m. • Sat.-Sun. 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. • Closed Mon.-Tue. • Registration Line: 303-326-8650
Photo credits Kevin Holiday, Kenny Spradling and Bert Philipus
FAMILIES
Junior Rangers
Full Moon Hike
Nature Fact or Fiction
Learn about the plants & animals that call Star K
Ranch home in this fun & educational class.
Animals in Winter • 218798 Dec. 14
Oh Deer! • 218800 Jan. 11
Poop & Pellets • 218799 Feb. 8
Sun., 1:30-3 p.m.
Ages 6 & older
Winter Break Nature Fun
Ages 5 & older
Walk as the full moon rises to see who’s out at night.
Star K Ranch
218793 Dec. 6 • Sat., 4:45-5:45 p.m.
Test your knowledge of local flora & fauna as we bust
some nature myths!
218792 Dec. 12 • Fri., 7-8 p.m.
Winter Solstice Walk
Ages 5 & older
Join us for an early morning walk as we celebrate the
rising sun on the shortest day of the year.
218811 Dec. 21 • Sun., 7-8 a.m.
Environmental Film Night
Ages 12 & older
Come watch the first full-length documentary film ever
made about legendary environmentalist Aldo Leopold.
Green Fire highlights Leopold’s extraordinary career,
tracing how he shaped & influenced the modern
environmental movement. Dave Steinke, director of
Green Fire, will be joining us for a Q & A after the film.
219753 Jan. 9 • Fri., 7-9 p.m.
Nature Hike at Coal Creek Arena
Ages 8 & older
Look for raptors, tracks & other signs of wildlife on this
winter morning stroll.
Coal Creek Arena
218810 Jan. 17 • Sat., 9-10:30 a.m
KIDS
Star K Kids
Ages 5 & under
Discover Aurora’s true nature through puppets,
interactive activities & discovery time on the trail.
Thu., 9:30 a.m. & 11 a.m.
Ages 6-12
Ages 6-12
Join us for one, two, or all three fun-filled days of
winter survival, animal tracking, shelter building
& more! Bring snacks, water bottle & dress to be
outdoors.
218809 Dec. 30 • Tue., 9 a.m.-12N
219864 Dec. 31 • Wed., 9 a.m.-12N
218808 Jan. 2 • Fri., 9 a.m.-12N
$10 per day • Registration required.
BIRDING 101
Learn ID basics & much more in these birding classes
& hikes.
Birds of a Feather
Ages 8 & older
Learn all about backyard bird feeding from the staff at
Aurora’s Wild Bird’s Unlimited store & some basic ID
skills in this fun class.
219754 Dec. 13 • Sat., 10 a.m.-12N
Winter Raptor Watching Clinic
Ages 10 & older
Winter is a great time to look for raptors in Aurora. Learn
which birds winter here, then head out on the trail to try
& spot them.
219755 Jan. 10 • Sat., 10 a.m.-12N
Bird Walk
Ages 8 & older
Look for hawks, owls, eagles & other birds as we walk
the trails.
218796 Feb. 14 • Sat., 8:30-10:30 a.m. • Coal Creek
EVENTS
Volunteer Steward
Recruitment Event
Ages 18 & older
219856 Feb. 28 • Sat. 10-11 a.m.
Join us for this recruiting event & discover how
volunteers provide essential support for Aurora’s true
nature through trail patrols, steward work projects,
resource monitoring, event staffing, educational programs
& more. Please RSVP by emailing [email protected]
or calling 303-326-8445.
Free, registration required.
Colorado Environmental
Film Festival
Aurora’s “Love Me, Don’t Feed
Me” videos have been selected
to be shown at the 9th Annual
Colorado Environmental Film
Festival. We’d like to invite you
to come view our videos along
with amazing films selected
from around the world that
will engage & inspire you. In
conjunction with the film festival
is an environmental photography exhibition, electronic
recycling, and a “Green” Expo. For more information on
attending the festival, entering your own environmental
photograph in the exhibition & more, go to www.ceff.net.
February 19, 20 & 21, 2015
American Mountaineering Center
710 10th St., Golden, CO 80401
Registration is required for all programs, except Star K Kids.
To register for nature programs, call 303-326-8650 or go online at
auroragov.org/recreation. All programs held at Morrison Nature Center,
unless noted otherwise. Children under 18 must be accompanied by an
adult for all programs except Jr. Rangers. Programs may be cancelled
due to low participation or poor weather. For more information call
303-326-8445 or email [email protected].