Animal Ambassadors

Irvine's Barred Owl is an example of what can happen when humans interfere in the development of hatchlings -- she was taken from her nest as an owlet and hand-raised by a well-meaning human. Unfortunately, human care resulted in our barred owl never developing the skills necessary to be a wild owl. She was surrendered to Irvine in 2003 and has been with us ever since.

Two species of Vulture can be found throughout Maryland – Black Vultures and Turkey Vultures. They are distinguished by their differing head and foot colors. Black Vultures have a blackish/grey head and feet, while Turkey Vultures have a reddish head and feet. They are vital decomposers in the ecosystem and help clean up roadkill and other carrion. Irvine’s Black Vulture has a lot of learning to do! She is an imprint, meaning she was raised by people (who didn’t know better) and thus does not know how to be a vulture. She cannot be returned to the wild due to her lack of vulture-skills, so instead will learn how to be an ambassador for her species in our care. She was our first publicly named animal- her name is Cora.

The Broad-winged hawk is considered to be one of the most common hawks in North America, with approximately one million birds in the population. It can live for up to 12 years in the wild. During migration, they can be seen soaring along coastlines and mountain ridges, oftentimes in large flocks. They are very vocal birds. They use different vocalizations for communication and protection, often compared to a high-pitched whistle. This curious and talkative raptor recently arrived at Irvine after having been rehabilitated and deemed non-releasable at Avian Conservation Center of Appalachia following a car strike.

Eastern Screech-Owls are the smallest resident species of owl that can be found in Maryland. But they make up for the lack of size with the loudness of their call! Their “whinny”-like call can be heard echoing through the forest up to a mile away. Irvine is the home to two Eastern Screech Owls, one red and one grey. Our grey Screech Owl unfortunately suffered a car accident where her eyeball exploded in the collision leaving her without sight in her left eye. This causes her to have very limited depth perception which deemed her non-releasable.

Irvine’s Great Horned Owl was found after she had fallen from her nest as a hatchling. She was taken to a wildlife rehabilitator where she imprinted on this caregiver -- that is -- she bonded and identified with humans rather than identifying as an owl. Unable to be released into the wild, she now lives at Irvine. She loves to take showers in the rain and play with her favorite toy: a tennis ball.

The Common Raven is an extremely intelligent omnivore, known for acrobatic flights and the capacity to solve puzzles. This Raven arrived to Irvine after receiving respite care at Frisky's Wildlife Sanctuary following an an injury in the wild. It first received medical attention at Chadwell Animal Hospital for a severely fractured left wing and damaged feathers. It will now call Irvine its forever home, receiving excellent care and enrichment while also serving as a teaching tool for students of all ages.

Irvine's Red-Shouldered Hawk overcame life-threatening injuries sustained in a car accident in 2012. As a result, he is missing a wing and was not able to be released back into the wild. Despite everything he's been through, he's still a spunky guy! He loves to eat mice and play with his enrichment toys. He's learned to balance in spite of his missing wing and makes a great Animal Ambassador in our community.

Perhaps the most commonly seen bird of prey, Red-Tailed Hawks can be found all over the United States. They are a larger raptor who often feed on rabbits and squirrels, but who will also make a meal out of an unprotected backyard chicken (hence their nickname – “chicken-hawk”). Red Tails are avid hunters and very persistent when chasing prey. Our male Red Tail sustained wing injuries from crashing into the underbrush in pursuit of prey when he was a Falconry bird. After he recovered from his injuries, he was transferred to a breeding permit and became a mated pair with a female Red Tail. When they didn’t produce viable young, he was transferred to us as an education bird.

Domesticated more than 3,000 years ago from their wild counterparts in South America, Guinea Pigs are extremely popular pets. Unfortunately, they also require a lot of social interaction with other Guinea Pigs, or their handler. Many people end up with only one Guinea Pig and then grow bored with them or unable to have time to socialize them. Hence why these three were surrendered to us. While not native, they share some commonalities with our native Groundhogs, which our Guinea Pig was happy to show guests up close and personal.

The Corn Snake is a North American species of rat snake that is found throughout the southeastern and central United States, and can be found frequently in corn fields where it preys on mice and other small rodents. Irvine's Corn Snakes were personal pets that were surrendered, and they spend much of their time burrowed in their enclosure.

Garter Snakes can be found throughout the United States and are one of the most common snakes you might find in your backyard. These thin snakes feast on diets of insects, amphibians, small fish, rodents, and small birds. Irvine's garter snake was surrendered to us by someone who had kept him as a pet. He is blind in one eye, which would make hunting in the wild an additional challenge.

Rat Snakes are Maryland’s most common species of snake. They can be found in many habitats and come in many color variations. Our Grey Rat Snake is another former pet that was surrendered to Irvine. He's nearly fifteen years old and enjoys spending his days curled around the tree branch in his enclosure.

Hognose Snakes are the “drama queens” of the snake world. When threatened, they will puff out their neck (imitating a Cobra), false strike, and, last but not least, play dead (by rolling over and sticking out their tongue!). Our Hognose was a previous pet and a generous donation to the collection.

King Snakes get their name due to the fact that they readily prey upon other snakes…even venomous ones. Our King Snake came to us after being a pet snake for a breeding project. The owner no longer needed her in his gene pool and offered her as a donation to Irvine.

Leopard Geckos are ground-dwelling lizards of dry rocky grasslands in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and portions of Nepal and Iran. They can brumate in the winter, living off of fat reserves, which are mostly stored in the tail (similar to a camel’s hump!). Brumation is a reptile’s way of “hibernating” although it is more of a sluggish, torpor-like state they can come in and out of more easily. They can voluntarily shed their tail as a survival mechanism to distract a predator. Their tails will regenerate but may look shorter or be a different color. They can live up to 15-20 years in captivity. Our leopard gecko, Winnie, arrived at Irvine in 2022 after being previously rehomed from a classroom. She is a popular Irvine animal ambassador during school visits. Maybe it’s because she always looks like she has a coy smile!

Maryland’s official state reptile is the Diamondback Terrapin. Once nearly extinct, they have been making a comeback in recent years due to more regulations and protections. Irvine is home to three male Terrapins. These turtles were part of a head start program to raise baby terrapins with the intention to release into the wild. Unfortunately, they were kept in human care for too long and could not be released. Instead they enjoy their time swimming in the massive tank in the exhibit hall at Irvine.

Eastern Box Turtles are a common native to our region and can be found in the woods, meadows, and most visibly – crossing the road. Their camouflage makes it difficult to find them among the leaves, rocks, and branches in their native habitat, but their slow movement makes it easy for them to end up needing help while crossing the road. All of Irvine's box turtles came to us after some sort of accident, either with predators or cars, or after being someone’s pet for longer than expected – they can live to be over 100 years old.

Painted Turtles are a common aquatic turtle often seen basking on logs in streams and ponds. Irvine is home to many wild Painted Turtles in our wetlands, but we also have two inside the center. These two males came to us after their owner could no longer care for them. As brothers do, they started fighting, so they now live in separate enclosures where they happily chase Guppies as enrichment.

Mud Turtles spend most of their live buried in the mud and moving along slow-moving rivers or ponds. Irvine has two Mud Turtles; both of which were previous pets and unable to return to the wild. The Mud Turtle in the exhibit hall can often be found hiding in her cave.

Wood Turtles are a special sight considering they are one of Maryland’s endangered turtle species. They are also endemic to North America – meaning they can be found nowhere else in the world! Irvine is home to both a male and female Wood Turtle. The male has a missing front foot which prevents him from returning to the wild. The female has an injured back foot that also prevents her from being released.

Green Frogs can be heard throughout the summer by their standard “banjo strum” call. Irvine is home to four Green Frogs that were either injured or previous pets. Look carefully as they enjoy hiding most of the day…if you can’t see them, then listen! The males often croak throughout the day.

Grey Tree Frogs are one of the 9 species of tree frog in Maryland and one of the most common. They are easy to hear during summer nights, but difficult to spot since they enjoy hanging out high up in the trees. The three Grey Tree Frogs that live within the Nature Center can be hard to spot as they blend in well with their stony-walled enclosure. They came to Irvine as tadpoles and were raised in captivity their entire life.

Similar to Leopard Frogs, Pickerel Frogs are a species of spotted frog. They differ from Leopard Frogs in that they have more rectangular spots, rather than rounded spots. Irvine’s Pickerel Frog was found on property with a missing back leg. This made him an easy target for predators, so instead he lives happily and safely indoors now.

Maryland is home to two species of “true” toads – American Toads and Fowler’s Toads. They can be distinguished by the number of warts in each of the dark spots along their backs – American’s have 1-2 warts, while Fowler’s have 3-4. Irvine is home to both a large female American Toad, who is missing her back leg and a male American Toad, who has a crushed back leg. We also have a small male Fowler’s Toad who was a previous pet and a hybrid American/Fowler’s Toad who can be distinguished from her large size and half and half warts down her back.

While Rainbow Trout are not a native trout species to Maryland, they are one of the commonly stocked trout in Maryland’s rivers. Irvine is part of Trout Unlimited’s Trout in the Classroom program. Participants raise sterile, female Rainbow Trout from eggs which are then used to stock recreational fishing locations within the state.

Tessellated Darters (Etheostoma olmstedi) can be found along the East Coast in flowing or standing water with a muddy bottom. They are Ray-finned fish that grow between one and three inches. They are omnivores that eat things like algae, smaller fish, insects, and crustaceans. These fish benefit humans because they help control mosquito populations. The 12 darters at Irvine were part of a graduate research study at UMBC. They were rehomed to Irvine after the research study.

Endemic to Madagascar, these cockroaches are nature’s garbagemen. They are decomposers where they feast on rotten leaf material and other organic matter. Irvine has two large colonies of “Hissers” that were bred from an initial colony from the National Aquarium. They are used as both educators, but also as a food source for our other animal ambassadors.

As the name suggest, this species of millipede is one of the largest that inhabits North America. They can often be found under logs in Irvine’s woods and the surrounding area. Our three captive Millipedes now exceeds 50, as two of our females decided to have babies unexpectedly! It has been an amazing experience to watch these tiny “worms” grow and develop.