|  | Innovative & Conscientious Pest Control Services in Lexington, Kentucky, for the Safety of Your Family, Home, Business and the Environment | | 
| Nuisance Wildlife Identification 
Skunks 
Most young die within the first year
•Maximum age in the wild is 7 years
Food preferences:
–Animal matter (insects or carrion)
–Vegetable matter (fruits and grains)
–Items in compost piles, garbage cans, pet food left outside at night
Top running speed of 7 mph.
•Climb trees or enter burrows to escape predators
•Also may show it’s teeth, growl, hiss, bite
•Breed in late February to late March
•Gestation 7-10 weeks
•Born in May – June
•1 Liter/Year
•4 – 6 Young Commonly
•2 – 16 Possible
•Young stay with female until Fall
•Can live 10 years but few more than 3 years
••Males may travel 4 – 5 miles each night when breeding
•Home range from ½ to 2 miles
•Nocturnal / Slow moving / Deliberate
•Not afraid of other animals due to spray
•Spray may cause blindness for about 10 – 15 minutes
•Odor remains for days to weeks
•Diet includes:
–Fall and Winter
•Plants, Fruits & grains, Field and House Mice, Rats, Cottontail Rabbits, and Small Mammals are eaten when other food is scarce
–Spring & Summer
•Plants & grains, Insects mostly, –Dig for grubs, Poultry eggs Squirrels 
Breed at one year old
•Breed in mid-December to January and again in June
•Gestation 42-45 days
•3 young per litter
•5 weeks start going outside, weaned at 10-12 weeks
•Home range from 1-100 acres
•In the Fall squirrels may travel 50 miles or more in search of better habitat
•Typically ½ of population die within a year
•Squirrels over 4 years are rare in wild
•Squirrels may live 10 years in captivity
•Flying squirrels active at night
•Food preferences of squirrels:
–Fall & Early Winter: nuts and fruits
–Late Winter & Early Spring: prefer tree buds
–Summer: fruits, berries, and plant material, insects, other animal matter such as bird eggs Raccoons 
Breed from December to June
•Gestation 63 days
•One litter per year
•3-5 raccoons per litter
•Most litters born April or May
–Some late breeding females may not give birth until June, July, or August
Adult males roam 3-20 square miles
•Adult females roam 1-6 square miles
•Territorial, do not overlap much
•Nocturnal
•Do not hibernate, but “hole up” in severe winter weather
Live as long as 12 years in wild, but rare
•Family groups stay together the first year
• Young raccoons represent a large portion of the population in the fall
–½ - ¾ of population less than 1 year old
Raccoons are omnivorous
•Plants include: all types of fruits, berries, nuts, acorns, corn, and other grains
•Animal foods include: crayfish, clams, fish, frogs, mice, rabbits, muskrats, and eggs of waterfowl and ground nesting birds, etc…. Opossums 
Live alone
•Have a home range of 10-50 acres
•Usually active at night
•Breed January to July
•Average of 7 young per year
•The opossums are the only marsupials in North America
•Young born 13 days after breeding and go to pouch
•Remain in pouch for 7-8 weeks
•Young remain with mother for another 6 to 7 weeks
Most young die within the first year
•Maximum age in the wild is 7 years
•Opossums are commonly thought to be stupid but in truth they are surprisingly intelligent.
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Food preferences:
–Animal matter (insects or carrion)
–Vegetable matter (fruits and grains)
–Items in compost piles, garbage cans, pet food left outside at night
Top running speed of 7 mph.
•Climb trees or enter burrows to escape predators
•Also may show it’s teeth, growl, hiss, bite, screech and/or exude a smelly fluid from anal glands
•If all else fails, may play dead
Office phone: (859)271-8852 |
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