The Call of the Wild—Wildlife Biology Member's Manual Book I

Appendix B: Lake States Wildlife Card Descriptions

Cottontail Rabbit (Sylvilagus floridans) Habitat: Open areas with shrubs, grasses, and small trees in the eastern U.S. Food: Grasses, leaves, and garden vegetables are summer foods. Twigs and bark of shrubs are winter foods. Wildfacts: A female cottontail has four to six young at a time. They are born blind without hair, but they grow fast and are on their own in just one month.

White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) Habitat: Open shrubby areas and fields across the U.S. Food: Grasses and flowering plants are summer food. Winter foods are twigs, stems, and evergreens. Wildfacts: White-tailed deer have scent glands between their toes. These help a female deer find her young when they wander too far.

Moose (Alces alces) Habitat: Northern forests with wetlands, streams, and ponds. Food: Leaves of trees, shrubs, and flowers are summer foods. In winter moose eat twigs and shrubs. Wildfacts: Moose are very good swimmers. Grown moose can swim five or ten miles. Calves can swim two days after they are born.

Southern Flying Squirrel (Glaucomys volans) Habitat: Hardwood forests in the eastern U.S. Oak trees and cavities (holes). Food: Acorns and nuts, flowers, buds, insects, and small birds. Wildfacts: These night-loving squirrels don't really fly, but they can glide through the air because of flaps of skin attached to their legs and body.

Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger) Habitat: Open woods, shelterbelts, and towns with trees in the eastern U.S. Fox squirrels nest in cavities or in leaf nests. Food: Acorns and other nuts, corn, insects, and small vertebrates. Wildfacts: Fox squirrels usually are orange, but sometimes come with totally black fur.

Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) Habitat: Forests (mostly older) in the eastern U.S. Food: Acorns, seeds, buds, berries, and small birds. Wildfacts: Gray squirrels bury nuts during the fall to eat in the spring and winter. Sometimes, they forget where they hide the nuts, and these nuts grow into trees.

Beaver (Castor canadensis) Habitat: Lakes, streams, and wetlands. Food: In summer, water plants, tree buds, and inner bark. In winter, branches from aspen, willow, and other trees and shrubs. Wildfacts: Beavers live in colonies of four to ten. Before the Europeans trapped so many, they could be found almost all across North America, except in deserts and in the Arctic.

Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) Habitat: Lakes, streams, or wetlands across the U.S. Food: Cattails, rushes, corn, dandelions, and other plants. Wildfacts: Muskrats live in lodges made of plants or in burrows in the banks of lakes and streams. Mink are their most important predator.

American Woodcock (Philohela minor) Habitat:Marshy/wooded meadows and upland with small woody plants. Food:Earthworms Wildfacts: Males dance and make a nasal "twange" noise to attract females.

Black Bear (Ursus americanus) Habitat: Mostly forested areas away from people. Food: Berries, nuts, carrion, honey, and ants. Wildfacts: Black bears are born in the winter, weighing less than a pound!

Badger (Taxidea taxus) Habitat: Prairies, meadows, and farmland in central and western U.S. Food: Pocket gophers, ground squirrels, birds, reptiles, and insects. Wildfacts: Badgers are nocturnal and liver underground in a mazing system of tunnels.

Timber Wolf (Canis lupis) Habitat: Isolated northern forests and mountainous areas. Food: Deer, moose, beaver, carrion, and fruit. Wildfacts: Wolves travel in packs of two to ten (they are usually related). Only on male and female produce young, and the other wolves help raise these young.

Coyote (Canis latrans) Habitat: Open and shrubby areas in the U.S. Food: Mice, squirrels, rabbits, birds, carrion, and sometimes deer. Wildfacts: Wolves usually chase coyotes away from areas they both use.

Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) Habitat: Forests and open brushy areas. Food: Woodchucks, squirrels, rabbits, snakes, ducks, insects, and fruits. Wildfacts: In winter, red foxes curl into a ball, to protect their face and head from cold.

Raccoon (Procyon lotor) Habitat: Open prairie, farmland, and urban areas. Food: Corn, garden vegetables, birds, eggs, fish, and other small animals. Wildfacts: Raccoons use deserted buildings, caves, and hollow trees for dens.

Long-tailed Weasel (Mustela frenata) Habitat: Woodlands, open and brushy areas, near water. Food: Almost exclusively meat, such as moles, mice, and rabbits. Wildfacts: In northern areas the fur of the weasel turns white in the winter, but the tip of the tail stays black.

River Otter (Lutra) Habitat: Most parts of North America where there is water that supports fish. Food: Fish, frogs, crayfish, and turtles. Wildfacts: The river otter can swim faster than a trout.

Little Brown Bat (Myotis lucifugus) Habitat: Caves, hollow trees and vacant mines in North America. Food: Insects, moths, mayflies, and beetles. Wildfacts: During hibernation, a bat's temperature drops to 56 degrees F (humans maintain a temperature of 98.6 degrees F!).

Star-Nosed Mole (Condylura cristata) Habitat: Northeastern states in moist soils. Food: Worms, insects, and small fish. Wildfacts: This mole stores fat (energy) in his tail for when food is scarce.

Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) Habitat: Shallow ponds and marshes across North America. Food: Seeds of water plants, crop seeds, and invertebrates. Wildfacts: Mallards can be identified by their green head with white band around the neck.

Pintail (Anas acuta) Habitat: Lakes, ponds, and bays across North America. Food: Seeds of native water plants, wheat, corn, and rice seeds. Wildfacts: The pintail is aptly named. It's tail is long and thin and gives the bird an elegant appearance.

Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) Habitat: Eastern U.S. and western coastal states in small lakes and ponds. Food: Acorns, wild grapes, mulberries, and insects. Wildfacts: Wood ducks also go by the names squealer, swamp duck, woodie, and acorn duck.

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) Habitat: Freshwater and saltwater marshes, lakes, and ponds across North America. Food: Leaves and seeds of plants such as corn and grasses. Wildfacts: There are different subgroups of Canada geese. The giant Canada goose is the biggest, the cackling Canada is the smallest.

Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator) Habitat: Lakes, ponds, and marshes in Alaska and western U.S. Food: Mostly stems, leaves, and seeds of water plants such as pondweeds, duckweed, and duck potato. Wildfacts: The trumpeter swan is the largest of all North American birds. There are few left in North America, but their numbers are slowly increasing.

Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) Habitat: Woodlands near open areas, particularly places with dead trees. Food: Mostly ants and ant eggs, termites, beetles, and berries. Wildfacts: Flickers and starlings often fight over the same cavity in a tree. Starlings usually win and take over the nest.

Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) Habitat: Lakes, rivers, and wetlands in U.S. and Canada. Food: Frogs, fish, crayfish, and other invertebrates. Wildfacts: Great blue herons nest in colonies in the tops of tall trees. they are able to live in cities if there are wetlands available for feeding.

Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) Habitat: East coast and central portions of the U.S.; sandy beaches on rivers and lakes. Food: Worms and other tiny invertebrates. Wildfacts: The piping plover is very rare. Their nesting places have been taken over by people.

American Bittern (Botaurus lentifinosus) Habitat: Central and southern U.S. in lakes, rivers, and wetlands. Food: Small animals in the water, fish, insects, and crayfish. Wildfacts: The song of the American bittern sounds like an old rusty pump.

Northern Harrier Marsh Hawk (Circus cyaneus) Habitat: Marshes and grasslands. Food: Voles, rats, mice, rabbits, insects, and other small animals. Wildfacts: The marsh hawk will somersault, dive, and do U-turns to attract a mate.

Common Earthworm (Lumbricus terrestris) Habitat: Moist soils. Food: Dead plant materials, leaves, stems, and roots. Wildfacts: Eathworms are important part of the soil-making process. Dead materials are eaten by earthworms and changed into food for bacteria and plants.

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) Habitat: Many areas across North America, especially near water. Food: Fish and carrion. Wildfacts: The bald eagle takes several years to mature. It is dark brown with white speckles until it is three or four years old.

Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) Habitat: Areas with high cliffs near lakes or rivers. Food: All kinds of birds including ducks, songbirds, and sea birds. Wildfacts: Peregrines nest successfully in large cities on top of tall buildings.

Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) Habitat: Forests, deserts, canyons, and plains across the U.S. Food: Cottontail rabbits, skunks, and other birds and small mammals. Wildfacts: The great horned owl uses nests of other birds instead of building their own.

Turkey (Melegris gallopayo) Habitat: Hardwood forests near prairies, shrubby areas, or farmland in the U.S. and northern Mexico. Food: Acorns, hickory nuts, berries of dogwood, sumac, and wild grapes, and crops. Wildfacts: Turkeys can run up to 30 miles and hour and can fly up to 55 miles an hour.

Ring-Necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) Habitat: Northern U.S. and southern Canada in open woods and fields. Food: Farm crops such as corn and soybeans, seeds from naive plants, and some insects. Wildfacts: Pheasants are originally from Asia and were introduced as a new game species during the late 1800s.

Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus) Habitat: Forests, usually near aspen. Food: Winter buds and flowers of aspen, willow, and hazel, also acorns, seeds, and berries. Wildfacts: On cold days in winter ruffed grouse rest in burrows in the snow called winter roosts.

Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) Habitat: Across the U.S. and Mexico, in prairies, deserts, urban areas, and farmlands. Food: Seeds of wild plants and farm grain. Wildfacts: The mourning dove is commonly hunted. They have a haunting call that sounds like a ghost.

American Robin (Turdus migratorius) Habitat: Open woods, grassy lawns, and fields. Food: Earthworms, berries, and insects. Wildfacts: Robins lay 3 to 4 eggs at a time, and once hatched, they are able to fly when they are 14 days old.

Red-Winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) Habitat: Marshes and fields across North America. Food: Insects and invertebrates. Wildfacts: The female red-winged blackbird is dull brown, while the male is black with bright orange-red patches on his wings.

Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides) Habitat: Northern forests in the Lake States. Wildlife use: Seeds of wild plants and farm grain. Wildfacts: After logging or fire new trees sprout from the roots of the old aspens.

Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa) Habitat: Forests in the Lake States (primarily central and southern). Wildlife use: Acorns are important food for many birds and mammals. Wildfacts: Bur oak acorns are distinctive. The caps on these acorns look like a hairy head.

Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) Habitat: Prairies and roadsides. Wildlife uses: Pheasants, blue-winged teal, and other birds nest in this tall, naive grass. Wildfacts: This grass can survive fires that kill other plants.

Red Osier Dogwood (Cornus stolonifera) Habitat: Northern wooded areas, around lakes, streams, and wetlands. Wildlife use: The leaves and stems are food for hares, moose, and deer. The berries are eaten by a variety of birds and mammals. Wildfacts: This plant is easily identified, especially in winter, because of its bright red stems.

Sago Pondweed (Potamogeton pectinatus) Habitat: Ponds, lakes, and marshes across North America in fresh or slightly salty water. Wildlife use: The seeds, stems, and tubers are food for waterfowl, shorebirds, moose, and muskrats. Wildfacts: This is one of over 60 species of pondweeds in the world. They are one of the most important water plants for waterfowl.

Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana) Habitat: Open woods and near ponds and streams. Wildlife uses: The leaves and stems are food for browsing animals like deer. The berries are eaten by quail, ruffed grouse, raccoons, and grey squirrels. Wildfacts: There are several species of cherry trees in the Great Lakes. Chokecherry is more like a shrub than tree.

Cattail (Typha glauca) Habitat: Wetlands, on the shores of ponds, in road ditches. Wildlife use: Muskrat use cattail for building their houses and eat the stems and roots. Red-winged blackbirds and waterfowl build nests in the stems or in the water surrounded by cattails. Wildfacts: The roots of cattails are eaten by people.

Mosquito (Culex pipiens) Habitat: They are found in many parts of North America, in areas near pools of water (no streams or rivers). Food: The young feed on very small pieces of animal and plant matter in the water. Only the adult females bite animals and feed on blood. Wildfacts: Mosquitoes are an important food for bats, spiders, birds, insects, and mammals.

White-Taled Dragonfly ( Plathemis lydia ) Habitat: Common in North America around ponds, lakes, and slow moving rivers. Food: The adultt are predators. They eat other small flying insects. Wildfacts: The young live in the water, feed on other insects, and breath trough gills.

Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) Habitat: Across North America Food: As catapillars the eat leaves of milkweed plants Wildfacts: Monarchs migrate thousands of miles soth tro Mexico in the winter

Medow Grasshopper (Orchelimun vulgare) Habitat: Common across North America, especially in grassy and open areas. Food: These are herbivores. They eat the leaves of a variety of plants, including crops such as corn and wheat. Wildfacts: Grasshoppers are important food for mice, songbirds, burrowing owls, ducks, and pheasants.

Decomposing Bacteria Habitat: Bacteria are found almost all over the earth in soil and water Food: They get thier food from dead plants and animals. Wildfacts: Bacteria are what make milk go sour, cider turn to vinigar, and dead leaves and plants turn into soil nutrients.

Morel Mushroom (Morchella semilibera) Habitat: Hardwood forest with moist soil. Wildlife uses: Squirrels, chipmunks, turtles, grouse, and other wildlife eat mushrooms. Wildfacts: Morels are one of the tastiest wild mushrooms. (Never eat wild mushrooms unless an expert has identified them for you!)

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