Storm took heavy toll on wide range of LI wildlife

At the Sweetbriar Nature Center in Smithtown, wildlife rehabilitators washed down a cormorant that was covered in thick mud and bottle fed weeks-old squirrel kits that had fallen from their waterlogged nests.

At the STAR Foundation, an animal rescue group in Middle Island, volunteers have been caring for baby rabbits “too young to be out of the nest” and birds that were so drenched and cold they seemed stunned and unable to fly. There were lots of little squirrels there, as well.

“I’m feeding a box full of squirrels as I’m speaking to you,” said Lori Ketcham, one of the directors of STAR.

The heavy rains and flooding that swept across Long Island over the weekend have killed countless wild animals, local wildlife rehabilitators said, and uprooted many others.

Intense storms can endanger every type of animal, large and small — mammals, amphibians and reptiles, birds and fish — both during and after the rough weather. Fish flushed from the natural borders of their rivers and lakes get stranded on dry ground once the waters recede. Bird nests get blown out of trees. Rabbits, foxes, snakes and other animals that build their dens underground must flee their flooded homes.

Animals can be swept away in fast-moving waters, and young ones separated from parents are unlikely to survive.

Some of the creatures fortunate enough to be taken for treatment by trained rehabbers have made a quick recovery.

STAR’s feathered patients, mostly “little guys” like wrens and finches, Ketcham said, were hypothermic when they arrived. But once the volunteers got them dry and warm, they were well enough to be released.

The muddy cormorant, too, was fit and healthy after a good cleaning.

The infant rabbits and squirrels will need more extended care. At Sweetbriar, staff will place the kits that came in after the storm in an outdoor enclosure when they’re a little older. By spring, “they can fend for themselves in the wild,” said Janine Bendicksen, Sweetbriar's wildlife rehabilitation director.

After a big storm like this one, some animals don’t need rehabbing so much as relocation. When the Mill Pond dam broke at Avalon Park Preserve in Stony Brook, species that live in and near freshwater — fish, crawfish, painted and snapping turtles, snakes and other reptiles — were carried into Long Island Sound. “Anything that gets washed out will die because of the saltwater,” Bendicksen said.

Those that survive, she said, "need to be moved to new freshwater ponds.”

Volunteers gathered at the washed-out pond after the dam collapsed to rescue as many turtles and fish as they could find and carry.  

Regional wildlife managers from the Department of Environmental Conservation have been on the ground in storm-damaged areas to see how the local fauna is recovering and haven’t seen animals in distress.

“Wildlife can be pretty resilient to these major events,” said Sean Mahar, the DEC interim commissioner. But he said the agency has been evaluating the damage to habitats and will “make sure we are restoring these ecosystems” and helping wildlife "rebound."

Even long after the floodwaters recede, storm damage to habitats can linger, making it challenging for animals to find food and shelter. Vegetation may be uprooted or washed out. Silt deposits alter river- and streambeds and smother aquatic plants. Riverbanks erode or collapse, and runoff washes debris and pollutants such as pesticides and oil into animals’ terrestrial and watery homes.

“I know there are people out there who lost everything,” Ketcham said. “But these animals lost everything, too.”