Columbia, SC (WLTX) -- Officials from Carolina Wildlife Care talked with Darci Strickland about some of the various kinds of creatures that inhabit the wooded areas of South Carolina.
Joanna Weitzel, the executive director of CWC, says one of the group's main goals is to educate Palmetto State residents on the different animals that live in their back yards.
Most of the animals that Weitzel brought with her were nocturnal, meaning they spend most of their waking hours during the night.
"They don't understand the wildlife that we're sharing our back yards with," Weitzel said, "So, we want to dispel some of the myths that go along with some of these animals."
Weitzel showed off a 4-week-old female raccoon, or a "little bandit" as they are known, that just began opening her eyes a few hours before broadcast.
She said that raccoons and possums are the most commonly seen animals for residents who leave food outside for their pets.
"The best way to keep these animals from frequenting your yard is to not leave food outside," Weitzel said.
Weitzel showed an anxious Darci a female Virginia possum that represents the only marsupial in North America. A marsupial is a mammal that helps its young grow in a pouch on the adult females of the species.
The wildlife expert says the possum is a cousin to the koala and kangaroo.
7/30/2009 12:27:41 AM
