Squirrels' tails tied together? A trapped bald eagle? Ohio wildlife officers see it all
An Ohio wildlife officer’s call to duty covers freeing squirrels unable to separate, along with more usual stuff.
? How four fox squirrels in Hardin County got their tails entangled would be a fool’s guess. Some wild ritual gone terribly wrong? Youthful indiscretion? A gesture of solidarity that didn’t quite work as planned? Unhappy chance? This is no space for shaming.
? Two dove hunters could‘ve found a happier ending by carrying their empty cans out rather than tossing them into the woods at Deer Creek Wildlife Area. Fines and court costs totaled $115.
? The driver of a truck stopped by a wildlife officer in Madison County for spewing litter on the highway turned out to be hauling an unregistered trailer, operating an unregistered and uninsured truck and doing all that without a valid driver’s license. Sheriff deputies then ruined the rest of his day.
? Apparently unable to change a flat tire, a stopped motorist helpfully held an umbrella over the head of an assisting wildlife officer in Harrison County to make sure the downpour didn’t impede progress.
? A pull-behind camper blazing on private property in Noble County was purposely torched to destroy it, though the two individuals who lit the conflagration were notified they were violating the state’s burn ban period. What followed their illumination cost each $290 in fines and costs.
? Acting on a tip during the January deer muzzleloader season, wildlife officers working Zaleski State Forest in Vinton County located eight hunters in a group using firearms that weren’t muzzleloaders. Fines and costs of $272 apiece ensued.
? A hunter in Delaware County who during last year’s gun season took two antlered deer ? the second without possessing a second permit ? got outed by an informant. Only one buck may be taken during a calendar season regardless of how many permits are purchased. The hunter racked up $727 in fines, court costs and restitution.
? An anonymous tip led a wildlife officer in Ashland County to three hunters handed an unwanted jackpot totaling $411 in fines and costs after being cited for hunting raccoons on private property without permission.
? In case they didn’t already know, two ATV joyriders paid $205 each in a Hocking County court to be reminded that O’Dowd Wildlife Area isn’t the right place for them to be free-wheeling.
? A deer hunter spotted in a tree stand during muzzleloader season didn’t possess a valid permit and was cited. One of the spotting officers recognized the unrehabilitated offender as the same hunter he’d cited during gun season for not wearing hunter orange.
? A wildlife officer in Marion County used a knife attached to a pole to cut free a young buck that had become entangled in a woven hammock. The deer ran off unharmed, although the hammock required attention.
? A bald eagle caught in a foothold trap survived superficial injuries and soared again. The trapper in Lorain County did some gum flapping before paying $150 in fines and costs for exposed bait and untagged traps.
? A landowner in Hancock County was cited for taking two bucks during last year’s archery season, though the second deer was game-checked by his wife. Between them, husband and wife shelled out $3,939.08 in fines, costs and restitution. The husband lost hunting privileges for two years, the wife for one.
? A snapping turtle taken from a Stark County resident who’d kept it illegally as a pet for more than two years has been installed as wildlife ambassador at Malone University. No doubt there are better gigs, but even an extended stint in academia beats being turned into soup.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Squirrels' tails tied together? Ohio wildlife officers see it all
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