Log in & Sign up
You are not logged in.
Most Commented
Got a grub or a groundhog problem?
Urban Nature Hotline ready to take your call
The Gazette
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Staffers at McGill University’s Urban Nature Hotline have spent their first month of operations this year dealing mostly with questions on grubs, nesting mallards, groundhogs and nosy skunks and raccoons.
“It’s been a busy month,” said Melanie Lefebvre, an environment student at the university’s Macdonald campus in Ste. Anne de Bellevue.
Lefebvre said she deals mostly with animal-related questions, most of which have been about skunks and raccoons as well as mallards who often nest next to backyard pools.
“Prevention really is the best medicine,” she said, adding that anyone who sees a mallard building a nest next to their pool should dismantle the nest so that the duck moves on to another, more appropriate, nesting site.
Manned by students who specialize in horticulture, agriculture, zoology and wildlife biology, the hotline is open from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays until mid-August and offers advice on many topics, including how to get rid of nuisance animals as well as pest and disease control and the maintenance of healthy, fertile soil.
As for skunks and raccoons, Lefebvre said exclusion is the best solution.
“Block off the area under the deck or any crawl spaces,” she said, explaining if the animals just seem to be passing by, it’s best to just let them go on their way.
The Urban Nature Information Service is in the Raymond Building, Rm R3-038; Macdonald Campus, 514-398-7882.
Information is also available on the UNIS website: www.unis.mcgill.ca