Hello Wild Side Readers!
Bobcats and coyotes and bears, oh my! In my years of educating, I’ve found that people have a fascination with Ohio’s wild carnivores. I can count myself as one that shares in the fascination. When I teach Ohio Certified Volunteer Naturalists in-training about mammals, we spend at least an hour on the order Carnivora. In Ohio, there are 6 families in the order Carnivora; from the cats (Felidae) to the dogs (Canidea) to the bears (Ursidae). Below is a link to a presentation on Ohio’s carnivores. I recently gave the program as part of the Mahoning County Extension and Mill Creek Metroparks Naturalist Series. I’ve also included a few links where you can learn more about Ohio’s carnivores.
Presentation: A Wildlife Sampler: Foxes, Minks, and Otters, Oh My!
Additional Resources:
- Reporting Wildlife Sightings
- Keeping Poultry Safe
- Urban Carnivores, Book
- Urban Coyote Research Project, Website
Marne Titchenell
Wildlife Program Specialist
(Psssst…do you know all 6 families within the Order Carnivora? I listed 3 above. The other 3 are Mustelidae (otters, weasels, and more), Mephitidae (skunk), and Procyonidae (raccoon).)