Urban Wildlife

It’s a People Problem, Not a Wildlife Problem

California’s wild animals are falling victim to unnecessary conflict and even death for a surprising reason – increasing access to human and pet food and garbage. The problem seems to get worse every year, as California’s human population continues to grow and expand into wildlife habitat.

The collage depicts some of the urban wildlife you may encounter in the City of Long Beach area. Click on an animal picture to the right to find out more about that animal.

You may not realize it—a simple bag of garbage, bowl of pet food, or plate of leftovers left outside your home, can cause severe harm to wildlife.

Even in a City of Long Beach area, wild animals, including coyotes, foxes, opossums, raccoons, snakes, migratory and predatory birds, are your neighbors. Most wild animals will not bother you. They naturally fear humans and keep their distance—so long as they remain fully wild.

But if wild animals have access to human food and garbage, they want more and more. They lose their natural fear of humans and can become aggressive.

They may cause property damage. They might threaten human and pet safety.

There is no relocation. Relocating problem urban animals is not an option because it only moves the problem to someone else’s neighborhood. There are several reasons trapped wild animals are not relocated:

• Wild animals in your yard come from many successive generations born in the city and survive in an urban setting with an abundance of food, water and shelter. They may not know how to forage for natural food the way wild populations do. When relocated, most urban wildlife dies from starvation in a new environment that is completely foreign. Animals that rely on a cache during leaner times will no longer find that food available.
• Urban wildlife constantly comes into contact with domestic pets and disease carrying urban animals. Once exposed, these trapped animals may introduce diseases into wild populations with devastating results.
• Wild areas that are able to support wildlife only support as many as the area can handle. Adding new animals only further burdens those animals already present, and upsets the delicate balance. An animal removed from an area leaves a niche that is filled by another animal soon after.
• Many animals are very territorial. Introducing a strange animal into a previously claimed territory leads to conflicts- often with bloody and deadly consequences.
• The State of California allows two options for handling nuisance animals: they can be released into the immediate area (defeating the purpose of trapping), or they can be humanely euthanized.

The mere presence of an urban critter is not a legitimate reason to remove these animals. The vast majority pose little threat to the health and safety of the community. Most people don’t want to trap animals, but become frustrated at the constant damage and conflicts they endure. Sometimes trapping is the only real solution, but it is only a temporary one. The long-term solution is to identify the specific damage or pattern, and make the changes necessary to discourage future problems. Become familiar with the types of animals that live in your community. This will help you better understand their role and ways to prevent conflicts from occurring.

It is not the intention of the Animal Care Services Bureau to remove wildlife from residential areas. Rather, the ultimate goal of the organization is to educate the public and foster a relationship between wildlife and the community, in which the two can live together and coexist in peace. This is designed to help neighborhoods better deal with wildlife issues, and further lessen contact with these animals by investigating changes in both human and wildlife behavior.  

Laws and Regulations
It is a violation of California State law for any wildlife to be kept as pets. Only authorized wildlife rehabilitators may keep injured or orphaned wildlife and then only for limited periods of time. California Department of Fish and Game regulations prohibit the relocation of raccoons and other wildlife without written permission from the Department. For further information on the legal status of raccoons and other wildlife, contact your local California Department of Fish and Game Regional Office.