Hi everybody. My name is Karina. I am currently part of a volunteer organisation called WIRES (New South Wales Wildlife and Information Rescue Service).

I am a first year veterinary science student at Sydney University. I used to do volunteer work at Taronga zoo doing public education, and also a Chase Alive Discovery Guide at National Parks in NSW. I already have a Bachelor Science degree in Biodiversity and Conservation with Honours in Museum studies and Palaeontology from Macquarie University. Through my volunteer work I have enjoyed educating people and love encouraging appreciation of our natural environment and unique Australian wildlife.

Wildlife First Aid

If you do find injured wildlife keep it in a dark warm place such as in a cardboard box with a towel wrapped loosely around it. Keep it away from loud noises, pets and children. Don't try to feed it.

Call WIRES on8977 3333 in Sydney or 1800 641 188 in the country.

You can visit the WIRES website for more information regarding wildlife.http://www.wires.org.au/

The following are a few memorable wildlife rescues and stories that have happened to me over the past several years.

NEW* I also have an online photo album with pictures of Australian wildlife that I have taken. If you would like to see these picturesClick here!

Enjoy!

Me at the zoo with an orphaned wallaby

These three baby ringtails were orphaned after their mother was killed by a car ('04)

Road Kill

As a wildlife rescuer and carer I have seen many animal victims of motor vehicles. Some of the most common animals that are affected by motor vehicles are blue-tongue lizards, birds such as rainbow lorikeets, and noisy miners, as well as possums injured at night. I have had some rainbow lorikeets and blue-tongues that have been successfully rehabilitated from motor vehicle injuries. One young rainbow lorikeet had a chip on her beak, and was concussed for a couple of days. She was kept for about 2 weeks before she had fully recovered. She still comes back every now and then and often brings along her new boyfriend. I recognise her from the slight chip on her beak. Most of the sorts of injuries caused by motor vehicles are so devastating that the animal cannot be saved. Unfortunately some of the not so common species of animals are affected as well (Echidna in Northbridge, & Powerful Owl in West Chatswood).

If you do find an animal that has been injured by a motor vehicle place it in a box and keep in a warm quiet place and call the relevant authorities such as WIRES or Sydney Metropolitan Wildlife. Don't feed an injured animal as it may have developed shock from the ordeal. Even seemingly dead animals can be checked for signs of life, especially possums. Dead possums may have a baby in the pouch who has survived from the initial disaster. Baby possums found in the pouch of a reasonably fresh dead mother should be taken together to a wildlife rescuer or carer.

You can help by becoming aware of wildlife on roads close to vegetated areas and driving slower, especially between dawn and dusk. Doing this will reduce mortality of wildlife on our roads.

My first rescue ('01)

I remember my first rescue very well. I was to pick up an injured ringtail possum that was found in the backyard of an old lady. I called up the lady and confirmed that it was indeed a ringtail possum and not a brushtail. I had heard some stories involving rescues with brushtail possums gone wrong which entailed some growling, scratching, and a wrestling between rescuer and possum. It sometimes ended with some scars and part of a missing finger of the volunteer. My prayers were answered when we identified it as a ringtail as it had a long thin tail which had a white tip, and not a bushy black tail.

I was very nervous and fumbled around to get my rescue gear ready. Once prepared I was over at the caller's house. The lady had contained the possum by placing a laundry basket over the top of where it was located in the backyard, with a brick on top to ensure it couldn't escape too easily. The possum was laying on its side, and the lady told me that it was sleeping, not a good sign.

My first objective was to get this possum into my rescue cage with little amount of blood shedding as possible. I envisioned this possum miraculously jumping to its feet as I go to grab it then scampering up my arm and biting and scratching away at my face. I was very aware of the lady watching me behind my back, and could imagine her run inside, lock the doors, and watch me through half-drawn curtains as the possum repeatedly attacked my body.

With these thoughts on my mind I got my towel ready to make a firm grip on the base of its tail, and back of neck. I lifted up the laundry basket and leapt in grabbing the possum very quickly. The possum didn't appear to be struggling much so while I had him in the towel I had a good look at him. His eyes were still closed and he had some puncture wounds on the back of his neck. He wasn't really breathing either. He was dead.

I asked the lady a couple of questions and found out that there were many cats in the area, and she had found some injured and dead possums in the yard before that had been attacked by cats. She was upset that the poor possum had died, but she would try to have a word with her neighbours so that the cats would be better controlled.

I was a bit disappointed that my first rescue was not on a live animal. It had been a bit of a dud but it later picked up and I had a run of baby ringtails. My confidence gradually built and my rescues became a good experience.

The caller, possum and me

Masked plover

Scary noisy miners

I received a call from the rescue office to pick up an injured noisy miner with two babies that was located on the side of the road of the Cammeray Golf-course. The caller described to me a parent bird that was flapping its wings who was injured and was making a lot of noise to protect its babies when approached by him. He couldn’t get close enough to take the babies off the road who couldn’t get up over the ledge of the gutter. I thought to myself, fair enough. Noisy miners are very protective of their babies and will sound the alarm if you get too close to their babies.

On arriving at the scene I was confronted with indeed a noisy adult bird with two babies, but they weren’t noisy miners. They were scary masked plovers. On seeing the masked plovers where the noisy miners should have been I panicked. I remembered being attacked by a pair of plovers when I was little playing in the park, not realising they had built a nest and the memory came back to me.

Masked plovers are usually docile birds but are very protective when they have a nest or young around. They like to make their nests on any flat surface, whether it be on a sports oval, park or even a building roof. They dive bomb like magpies, but don’t actually peck you and pull out at the last minute whilst making a really loud ‘ker ki ki ki’ call.

I approached the family of plovers slowly at first, then when they sounded the alarm I got in quickly and grabbed the two babies. I then bolted a fair distance into the golf-course whilst dodging the aerial attacks of the adults. Whilst running around I couldn't help but notice how cute the two small fluffy babies in my hands were. Their plumage was mottled and such that after placing the babies down on the ground, they camouflaged instantly. I dashed back into the cover of the trees. The adults eventually calmed down and got back to their babies. The family was safe in the golf-course off the road.

Wow! That was an adrenaline rush, even bigger than the ones I get when confronting a snake.

Snake on the roof

This rescue started off with a call to pick up a snake that was up on top of the roof shed of the caller. I spoke to the caller who said that there was an injured snake atop the roof shed. It was obvious to me after a few minutes into speaking to the caller that he did not want the snake around. He had a child and did not want his son harmed. (Fair enough).

The caller identified the snake as a red-bellied black snake as it was black on top, but he couldn’t actually see its belly. He had made a lot of noise around the snake to try and get it to move away, but it went on dozing in the sun. I calmed the caller as much as I could and called back a couple of hours to see if it was still there. It was indeed. There was something suss about this snake who was not obviously trapped but would not budge, so I went over to the caller’s place to remove the snake.

When I identified the snake it was not a red-bellied black snake, or even the alive type. It was a plastic toy snake. The caller was very embarrassed and so was I. This wasn’t the first time that I had received a call from a distressed person about snakes on their roof which turned out to be toys. I had another a couple of months back (is it just me, or is this common?).

The culprit 'snake'

Green tree snake

Green Tree Snake ('06)

I got called to pick up a green tree snake in Middle Cove which had been brought in by a pet cat. The poor little guy had extensive lacerations and bite marks to its body.

Was taken to an experienced reptile vet and administered with fluids, painkillers, and antibiotics.

I passed the snake onto an experienced carer. With time and good care the little guy will heal up ok and will be released back into the wild.

One-eyed mother ringtail, with her two babies

The Ringtail possum family

On another rescue I was called out to pick up a baby ringtail that was found at the base of the callers tree in the front yard. The mother ringtail was up in the tree with another baby ringtail on its back during daytime. I got out to the site and found out that the mother had dropped the other baby. I was also told by the caller that a currawong had been seen lurking about. I checked the babies for injuries. One had a weepy eye, but other than that both were fine. So I went and placed the twins in a pouch together on top of some towels with a nice hot-water bottle.

I did a bit of background checking and was told by the caller that the mother had been seen on the previous day out and about during the day. This seemed a bit weird because possums are nocturnal and shouldn’t be out and about during the day. While I was observing the mother happily munching away on fruit on one of the lower branches of the tree I decided that I would try to grab her. I climbed up a little way up the tree and managed to get a good hold of her tail and scruff of neck. Once on ground I had a good look at her and noticed that one of her eyes was missing. It was lucky that she was low up in the tree and that I could get a hold of her.

Ringtail possums usually need the use of both eyes in order to survive well in the wild. Brushtail possums on the other hand can cope OK with the use of only one eye (read on for Percy, the one-eyed possum). The ringtail mother's missing eye may have been one reason why she was out and about during the day.

I took the family of three and passed them onto another foster carer who happened to have a spare aviary to house them all in. The mother would raise her own babies in the safety of the aviary.

Percy, the one-eyed (brushtail) possum

This rescue occurred a couple of years ago on the grounds of a TAFE college. I got a call to pick up an adult female brushtail possum who was found sleeping inside a rubbish bin. She had a badly injured left eye that was all filled with puss. Her sleeping arrangements probably wouldn't have made her eye get any better.

The callers informed me that there were many brushtail possums around in the grounds and warned me that the last WIRES person to pick one up off the grounds got bitten on the thumb. Adult brushtail possums can get pretty aggressive when in a vulnerable position and are approached. I always bring gardening gloves and many sets of towels when called out to pick up an adult brushtail.

This big girl was OK though and didn't put up much of a fight, so the transfer from bin to rescue cage went very smoothly (probably because I bundled her up in many layers of towels, as quick as I could). I went and took her to a vet clinic who generously treats and patches up wildlife at no charge. One of the vets who is very familiar with me because of all the wildlife that I brought in was great and actually operated on the possum's eye and cleaned it up very well. James the vet placed her under anaesthetic, took the eye out and stitched it up. The nurses at the clinic affectionately named the possum Percy. I was advised by James to keep Percy for a while until her eye had healed up a bit before releasing her.

So I kept Percy in my aviary and filled it with branches, leaves, an assortment of fruit, and some water. You would think that this sort of  accommodation and free food would keep a possum happy, but this was not so for Percy. During the third night after her surgery she found a weak spot in my aviary which she chewed through, and managed to squeeze her way out to freedom. It was amazing! The hole that she squeezed through was so small.

It is just as well that she is a female, because male brushtail possums usually have to fight to gain a place in new territory. Having an injury would not have helped in her situation, trying to fit into a new area, had she been a boy. She would have still found it difficult in a new area, but she has adapted well to my area because I still see her around from time to time. Just goes to show how determined our wildlife can be to adapt and survive.

Echidna in suburbia

This is a story about how wildlife are slowly coming back into suburban areas. I received a call to pick up an adult echidna that was wandering alongside a road in Middle Cove. I prepared myself for the rescue with some gloves and a rubbish bin. A metal rubbish bin is pretty good transportation for echidnas as they are very strong and can dig through just about anything in order to escape. I have heard stories from other rescuers where an echidna has burrowed straight through plastic carry cages and even burrowed into the car in which it was being transported in.

From information that I gathered from the caller the area was surrounded by dogs and an unlikely habitat for an echidna. There was some bush in the area, which was probably where it came from. When I approached the echidna it stiffened and positioned itself so that its spikes were sticking out everywhere. Echidnas can't shoot out their spines like projectiles. They are not related to porcupines or hedgehogs but are part of a unique group of mammals which lay eggs.

The echidna was an adult and I could not tell if it was female or male. Only internal examinations would yield results as to what gender this echidna would be. Mother echidnas don't really have a pouch as such either. They use the skin on their belly to enfold their puggle, which is the term for a young echidna. You can also guess when the mother gets the young off her…………yep that’s right, when the little one grows it's quills.

Gingerly I put this spiky mass into the can and released it into nearby bushland.The echidna waddled away as soon as I placed it on the ground in the bush reserve. It paused only once to look and sniff back at me before heading off. Adult echidnas in particular need to be released close to where they are found. The mother would often leave the burrow with her young still in it. She closes up the entrance so that predators do not take the young, and probably to prevent the young one from wandering too far. The mother will return from foraging for food so that the young can suckle her milk. So if a mother is relocated too far away from her burrow the young one may perish.

Surprisingly more and more echidnas are being found in suburbia. I even read in the paper of one showing up around Cremorne shops surrounded by buildings and roads. It is a good sign that these creatures are possibly coming back, but residents should be very aware that they are around and slow down on our roads. These spiky ones don't have much road sense and unfortunately become victims of motor vehicles.

Tawny frogmouth

Not all animals can adapt to changing conditions and environments. This is a story of one such animal out of the many that didn't make it when they came into care. I was called out to a backyard where an adult tawny frogmouth had been found in the swimming pool. The owners of the place had taken the bird out of the pool and had left it out in the backyard to dry off and hopefully fly away, but it hadn't moved for some hours.

On examining the tawny frogmouth I noticed that its wings were OK and it would attempt to fly, but its feet were unresponsive. It couldn't move its legs or clench its feet. It was also quite skinny so may not have eaten for a while. I was worried so took it to the local vet, but they weren't very experienced with tawny frogmouths so suggested I take it to the zoo vet.

I took it home and placed some food in its cage, but it wouldn't touch it. I later found out that it couldn't swallow food. That would explain why he was so skinny. I called around and found out from another WIRES member experienced with tawny frogmouths that my tawny exhibited classic symptoms of organo-chloride poisoning. Many birds of prey eat rodents and sometimes they may come across one that had eaten some poison bait. With the drought well underway and lack of food available, many of birds of prey would be breaking down fat stores and thus releasing toxins into the body. Once they got to the stage where they couldn't swallow and eat there was not much that could be done, and most would die.

I prayed that this tawny would be OK. He was so very pretty with his mottled feathers, big wide yellow mouth, and huge red eyes. I would take it to the zoo vet the next day as it was closed for the day, and maybe they would have a solution to save this tawny. Unfortunately, he was too far gone and died overnight. I had become attached to the poor creature so buried him in a spot in the backyard.

A baby tawny frogmouth

The twin girls just before going into the aviary

Ringtail babies (good & naughty)

This is a story that started out sad, but ended becoming a happy ending. It started out with a call to pick up a baby ringtail possum who was found in the backyard of the caller beside the body of its mother. I got my gear ready and was over at the caller's place in a flash. The callers had a dog which was kept inside while I tended to the baby and examined the mother. It was very strange! The mother's body had no physical injuries. No bruising on her paws to indicate electrocution, no puncture wounds or fur missing to indicate an animal attack. There didn't seem to be any kinks in her spine either to suggest a broken back. It was a mystery to how and why she died.

I was told by the caller's that they had found the mother in the afternoon, but judging by the stiffness of her body I assumed that she had died overnight. I next attended to the baby. The poor baby girl had gone through the whole day standing vigil by her mum with no milk. I would re-hydrate her later.

My examination of the body didn't end there. There was a bulge in the mother's pouch with a little tail sticking out. She had twins and they were both girls. I later got a cotton pouch and rubbed it on the mother's fur to get her scent before taking the two bubs and placing them inside it. Then it was re-hydrating time.

Once the two little girls were warmed up I made up some special lactose-free milk out of powder and water. Baby possums (and many other animals) are lactose intolerant so we have to feed them this special milk. There are many brands that can be bought at pet shops or wildlife stockists.

I don't like naming the babies that come in because once they are named I get attached to them. Their cute adorable features such as bright eyes, miniatures paws, tiny pink nose, and long tails are very hard to resist as it is. These two girls became known as 'Good', because when she first came in she took to the milk straight away, and 'Naughty' (because she didn't like the milk). Later on when they both drank well I got them muddled up because they were twins and looked so much alike.

The girls grew up so quickly and before I knew it they were off milk and into leaves, fruit, and trying to get out of their cage and running around. They would get a brief chance to run and jump around while I cleaned their cage and replaced the food, but it would be near impossible to get them back in. After getting them back in they would cling to the side of the cage and stare out with those bright eyes. Once the girls were big enough I had to pass them onto somebody who had an unoccupied aviary. My aviary had some rainbow lorikeets in them that were not ready for release.

For about a week I kept the two girls in an unused shower with a big branch and the railing side of a cot so that they could run around. I must say that this was a very convenient setup because cleaning was made very easy because of the fact that it was a shower. Once another volunteer's aviary was free I passed the two now grown up possums on so that they could be outside and have more room to run around before release. Once ready, the door to the aviary would be opened at night so that the two girls would be able to come and go from the safety of the aviary as they pleased. This is called a soft release, and we try to do this with hand-reared animals as much as we can.

Currawong

There was a pair of currawongs which had made a nest in the tree next door. They like to eat the berries off our mulberry tree out the back when the season is right. Once one of them got at a baby noisy miner, which I was hand-raising, through the cage and ate it. My dog found a pair of baby crested pigeons in our neighbourhood which were being attacked by currawongs. One of them was saved. It is their nature to be cruel like that, but nature can be cruel to them as well.

The pair of currawongs in the tree next door had a baby. It grew rapidly and before I knew it the baby was a brancher that could fly a bit. It was still dependent on its mum and dad, but I would see it go from tree to tree. I really looked forward to seeing this bub grow up to be sly and sneaky like its parents. Its mum and dad were beautiful healthy specimens who went to a lot of trouble to protect its young.

One day I heard a loud 'grawk-grawk-grawk' call from the sky and saw a group of channel-billed cuckoos flying overhead. A pair landed in a tree out the back where the currawongs were nested. Channel-billed cuckoos parasitise currawongs, magpies and crows. The cuckoos lay their own eggs in the nest of the host bird. The host bird then unwittingly raises the young of the channel-billed cuckoos. When the channel-billed came to rest in the currawongs tree it started to harass the baby currawong. The parent currawongs courageously swooped and dived at the cuckoos until they eventually gave up and flew away. I was pleased that the parents had successfully protected their baby from the cuckoos.

Sadly a couple of days later the baby was found on the ground in my neighbour's yard. Their was no physical injuries, he was fat because he had been fed well, and their was no parasites like gapeworm. The baby was struggling and seemed to be in a seizure when I arrived to pick it up. It looked like he had a head injury or lack of oxygen. His sight was going. He was dying. I knew there was nothing that I could do. I prayed that he would get better, but he didn't and died in front of me. It was really sad. One moment he was alive and doing well. He was fed well and growing up good. Gaining more flight experience with each new day, then the next thing you know he was suddenly dead. Nature can be cruel like that.

The baby brown snake

Baby Brown Snake

I received a call from a person who had a snake on his property that needed to be identified. The snake was injured so I quickly rushed to the scene. On arrival the poor snake was already dead. The snake was only little and was coloured light brown with dark bands. It had a dark nape across its neck. It was a baby eastern brown snake. I noticed a kink on the snake's neck and asked the caller how the snake was found. He explained that he had seen the snake and had got a shovel and hit it. That explained the injury. The caller very proudly said that he was only protecting nearby people from it.

About 90% of snake bites occur when the person is trying to catch or harm the snake. This man was lucky that he had not been bitten. A baby venomous snake has as much toxicity in their venom as an adult snake. He may have been seriously compromised had he been bitten.

I hear of many cases where people have killed a snake in the sake of protecting their others, especially their family. However, if you are injured you cannot protect others. If you are dead you certainly cannot help your family.

It is recommended that if you are concerned about a snake that is on your property to call the relevant authorities such as WIRES or Sydney Metropolitan Wildlife. A trained snake handler can be sent out to deal with the snake so that you don't need to endanger yourself.

Alcoholic Snake

I got a call some time ago to pick up a snake that had been found in the bathroom of an elderly resident at a retirement village. I got my snake handling equipment ready which consists of a jigger, which is a modified golf-club with hook, a bag attached to a hoop, and of course a bandage (just in case). On arrival at the scene I met a distraught elderly lady. She was very concerned because the snake was out of the bathroom but very close to her drinks cabinet. She didn't want the snake getting near her drinks. I quickly captured this little snake. It was a small golden crowned snake. This snake is practically harmless. The public often hears about snakes, and it is usually stories about encounters with the venomous ones. Most of the snakes around are harmless, and even the venomous ones just want to get away. Once the situation was under control I released this little guy in nearby bushland. The resident was very happy that her drinks were safe, and I am sure that the golden crowned snake was happy to be on his way, although sorry that it hadn't had a sip of her drinks.

What the people did at the retirement village was excellent. They didn't try to handle the snake themselves and called somebody who had been trained in handling snakes. The majority of snake bites occur when somebody is trying to catch or harm a snake. So it is important that if you do see a snake to leave it alone and don't go near. Keep pets and children away from the snake and if it is inside the house call the relevant authorities like WIRES or Sydney Metropolitan Wildlife. If a snake is on your property outside the house there is probably a good reason why it is there. Snakes like all animals need suitable shelter and access to food. In most cases a messy garden, like timber, rubbish, or corrugated iron left lying around provide the snake with some shelter, but it also provides places for rodents to hide in as well. Rodents are usually the food of the larger snakes, so these reptiles are great rodent exterminators. If you live near the bush the snake could just be passing by, in which case it is best to leave alone.

A golden crowned snake