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Contrasting tales: Duck killer and habitat maker
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Published: June 20, 2009
There is a lot of painful news in the world, and I don't want to trivialize it, but a guy in Virginia really got me steamed.
Seems this drunk showed up at a restaurant by the Potomac River and wanted more alcohol.
According to our sister paper in Woodbridge, the staff refused to serve him because of his apparent inebriation. So what does goofball do?
Well, first he got mad, of course. Then he walked down to the water where the ducks play and prey on scraps from the restaurant patrons who enjoy the ducks.
Mr. Big Shot yanks out his pistol and starts blazing away at the ducks.
He gunned down mama duck. She had several babies with her, but they're OK.
Everybody was stunned, but what does one do with an armed drunk? You can shoot him, but the application of deadly force in the defense of a duck probably won't fly in court.
The duck killer escaped in his car, but witnesses got his license tag number.
It didn't take police long to find him. He wrecked his car.
He got canned for drunk-driving, reckless use of a firearm and refusal to take a breath or blood test.
They still might get him for killing the duck, at least I hope they do. Although its legal in Virginia to kill an animal considered a game species, mama wasn't wild, but a domestic duck.
And maybe duck season is closed in that part of Virginia.
He ought to cool his heels and his temper for a while in the slammer. And perform public service.
Feeding and cleaning up after the ducks for a couple of years sounds fair.
And he can walk, unarmed, while he's doing so.
What a dipstick!
There's a guy in Hickory, however, who would never hurt a duck. He's one of the most kind-hearted people I know regarding animals, wild and tame.
I appreciate his dedication to God's creatures. He doesn't hunt, and I do, but he's not the kind who harasses people like me.
Gary Eklund is now the proud manager of an officially certified wildlife habitat.
Uncle Bear, as he's called, got the certification from the National Wildlife Federation because he makes sure his yard and garden are wildlife-friendly.
His piece of the Earth is a bird sanctuary, home for a multitude of butterflies and a haven for whatever critter happens to show up.
For certification, a property owner must provide the four basic elements that all wildlife need: Food, water, cover and places to raise young. The owner must employ sustainable gardening practices.
Uncle Bear's place fills the bill.
I might qualify, too, because my woods are all natural. There is very little management on my part, other than to try to keep the vines at bay and the stream unclogged.
All critters are welcome there. Well, except for that stupid cat that sometimes terrorizes the cardinals. And the occasional coyote that disturbs the rabbit population. And the yellow jackets and hornets that get too close to the house.
I've dosed my share of stinging things.
But when I get mad, I don't charge the crows, squirrels or that stupid cat with guns blazing.
Deer calmly munch on my lawn. Birds tweet from the front porch. Squirrels dine al fresco on the deck. I don't interfere.
I do reserve the right to threaten the squirrels with broom and a rock or two if they try to eat the siding on the house.
The woods, however, are not of my making. I live there by the grace of God and permission from the land.
Uncle Bear, on the other hand, has had to work to establish his wildlife haven. It did not come entirely ready-made as mine did.
In return for clearing part of the woods for a house, we have let the clover thrive, not cut away thickets and overhanging branches that provide resting places, and left undisturbed the stumps and dead trees used as rooftops and apartment houses.
A salt block for the deer is a nice touch, although we do vie for the red delicacies that spring from the ground when the rainfall is just right and mushroom spores come to life.
Don't ask me what kind they are. My wife is the biologist. I just pick and clean the mushrooms. And eat.
The deer get their share.
Uncle Bear, and many people like him, make sure critters on their plots get their share, too.
You can create a certified wildlife habitat if you have a balcony or a thousand-acre tract. Go to www.nwf.org to find out how.
Congratulations, Uncle Bear. It's nice people like us who are unalike can be so similar.
Hmm. There's a bit of philosophy in there somewhere, probably worth contemplating.
Larry Clark is a Record staff writer. Reach him at lclark@hickoryrecord.com.
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