16 Critters to Watch Out For In The Wilderness

It is good that this article was posted because many people never really think about the risks when they must be away from fairly well-inhabited areas. One does not have to be in true wilderness to run into many of the animals listed.

I would like to make a clarification, if I may. The article appears to be focused on North America. If this is the case three of the first group of six listed are actually the same species of animal. Simply called by different common names in different areas. The mountain lion, cougar, and panther of North America is the same animal. The other big cat in the western hemisphere is the jaguar in South America. The black panther often spoken of is a melanistic color variation of the jaguar, not a separate species.

However, I would like to add some potentially dangerous animals to the list.
1) Javelina/peccary. Mostly in areas of the US southwest and down into Mexico and Central America. Though they look like small pigs, they are not in the same family as pigs. And they do act somewhat similar. Many might not consider them a danger as they are much smaller in general that feral pigs. Still, some of the largest boars can be upwards of 75 pounds or more. And they do have sharp tusks and sharp hoofs. And they are social animals so are usually found in groups of four or five to fifteen or twenty. As males are hierarchical in the group, not loners, there will be several animals more than willing to protect the rest.

As with almost all animals, a female javelina with you will be the most aggressive of all. And believe me, though small, they have very sharp teeth and the hooves can be sharp, especially if they are in a rocky environment. If not come upon suddenly or wind up trapped, they will usually be long gone when you get to where they were. But if not, be prepared to fend them off and/or protect yourself from them. Not only might there be any of several diseases that can be transmitted to humans, but they also tend to have fleas, which is just another problem. They are good to eat, though.

2) American Bison, usually just called buffalo. Mostly in and around Yellowstone Park, but occasionally found in other areas out west in the US. If you want to know what these animals can do, just watch a video or two about the attacks that take place in the park. They look like slow lumbering creatures. And will often come right up to a vehicle and walk on by. If a person is outside of that vehicle the situation can become very different very quickly. Not to mention a single cow with a calf is a danger all its own. They can and will charge, use their horns and their hoofs and body to gore, trample, and stomp a person. A person will be very lucky if they are attacked in such way.

Sometimes they will do some damage to just give a warning, but just some damage from a buff is enough to put you in a hospital for a while. Assuming there are any hospitals. Treat American Bison with the same respect you give actual predators. A buffalo is not going to eat you, but you would still be dead.

Like several other animals on the list, bison can look slow and rather lovable, so children are often drawn to them. If you are anywhere near buffalo country, keep an extremely close eye on children, to the point of not letting them out of your sight.

3) Deer. All species and varieties. While not as large as moose and elk, they will still attack if startled or trapped. If they wind up in a situation which is not familiar to them, such as wandering into a back yard or even camp with tents and picnic tables, they can very often panic and start running, more or less randomly it looks like at times, trying to get away. If there is not a very obvious open path right in front of them, they can go any direction, and will attempt, and often succeed in going over or through things up to seven or eight feet tall, including wooden fences. Chain link and other wire fences they will often try to run through, and when they do not make it, they will attempt to jump over them.

Be in the way of one in a panic, and it will go right over you. The hooves are sharp on all of them, and when a deer has antlers past the velvet stage, they can and will use them with every bit of effectiveness as a trained fighting bull in a ring in Spain.

Traveling through a forest and even some meadows at the right times of the year, you can walk right up onto a fawn, and even sometimes a full grown deer. If there is no indication you have seen them, and you came up in a situation where they are not aware of you until you are close, the does and younger does and bucks will usually just stay down quietly. But get to a point and they literally explode up, and whatever direction they happen to be facing is where they will head. And that will often be toward whatever came up on them as they tend to bed down in pretty confined areas.

Do not take deer lightly. Not even the smaller varieties back east. An 80 pound deer with antlers can do a number on you, and due to many movies and TV shows, children are often not nearly cautious enough if they see one, even if it is charging right toward them.

4) Wolverines and badgers. Though wolverines are predominately further north in the US they can be a deadly adversary if you wind up in the area. Not to mention, like badgers and raccoons, they are curious, and always hungry, especially for salt, they will invade a camp and can sometimes get into cabins if not kept carefully locked up. And they can be vicious if cornered or they feel trapped. They are low to the ground but fast with sharp teeth and claws on their paws. Be very, very careful in wolverine country. Badgers are not nearly as bad, but like raccoons and opossums, you do not want to mess with them. Or leave your supplies vulnerable.

With all of the animals in this grouping of primarily nuisance animals, it is not just human food they will go after. Leather products, often anything with any salt on it from human touch, such as ax and shovel handles, if wood, can be gnawed on to the point of destruction. Be aware.

5) This is a group, as opposed to a single species or type of animal. I am talking about feral animals of all types. If the situation becomes prolonged to much degree, there will be many domestic animals turned loosed, abandoned, that escape, or simply have lost their human companions and start to survive on their own. Dogs will usually form packs. Until they get to the point that they are shaggy and wild looking, they will look like what they started out as. Someone’s pet.

So it is tempting to approach them, especially by children. If they have already started to lose their bonds with humans, due to being attacked by humans that have run them off or shot at them already, or if they have tasted human flesh in events where there are dead bodies available and no regular dog food put out for them, they will attack a child just like a coyote or any other predator.

While most breeds of dogs, over the millennia they been domesticated and lived with humans, there is a natural tendency to want to be with humans. However, starvation, injury, fear, and pressure to feed their young can quickly overcome that reluctance to harm humans where they would ordinarily protect them. Especially children.

During the time they still look like a pet rather than a wild animal, and that drive to be near humans, feral dogs can and will often come close to humans, and then, when that hunger hits, the reluctance to attack is gone, since they now have a great opportunity.

Once wild and in packs, consider and treat them like coyotes, only slower, and not quite as fast or savvy.

I do not want to put it all on dogs, though. Feral cats, though usually not likely to out and out attack a human, even a child, they have a remarkable ability to cause humans a great deal of grief when feral. Even cats that have homes now, and are fed and watered, groomed, and taken care of by loving families, if allowed to roam on their own at times, especially at night, are usually the animal that is getting into trash cans, turning them over, knocking off the lids, and caterwauling at night in many communities, not stray dogs.

In a disaster situation, those cats will be the first to go feral if they lose their human attendants. They already have some of the skills. The rest that wind up surviving the early stages, as in not being killed and eaten by the local dogs, or killed by the existing population of feral Tomcats that always seem to be in an inhabited are. Tomcats kill. They breed but often kill the offspring if they can get to them. And they kill any other male cat that comes within their territory. Including females that cannot breed.

Again, as I said, they are not likely to attack a human, but if a baby was not being watched closely, and an injured Tomcat, or starving one for any reason, might just try. But the main thing is the fleas they will have, and the diseases they will probably carry, including rabies. They are just as likely, and often more likely, to have rabies than feral dogs because they are a bit more susceptible to being attacked and bitten by the wild animals that carry the disease now, once they begin to interact with them.

Anything that a cat will eat, and that is many more things once they go feral than it might be under normal circumstances when they can finangle their human to get them something else, food left vulnerable can be snatched by a cat and the food and the cat gone in just seconds.

Just an FYI here: I have seen squirrels, both tree and ground, do that same thing in campgrounds. Usually, a piece of fruit or similar They might skitter around a few times, coming close but dodging away if any movement is made toward them. But once they zero in on whatever it is, unless that item is taken out of their sight and ability to get to, they will go after it at some point. After dozens of approaches and retreats, if you are not, or your dog is not, there to stop it, a squirrel will finally get close enough, and when not chased or scared off, will make that last mad dash, grab the food, and take off running. I have seen a ground squirrel that would easily fit in the palm of my hand, do this very thing, taking an apple that had to weigh three or four times what the squirrel did. It was after many trips through our camp, with detours toward the picnic table each time, approaching from all different directions and angles.

I was right there watching it, within five feet of the picnic table. I dozed, no more than ten seconds, and when I opened my eyes, there was the ground squirrel, working its teeth into the apple holding it still with its front paws. When it saw me lift my head, it crunched down and took off. It could not lift the apple up and run, but it kept it in front of it and got out of there faster than you can imagine.

The point of me mentioning this is that had that been a predator, that could harm a person, especially a small child, it could happen exactly the same way, with a child or baby taken, rather than an apple. Ten seconds.

That is pretty much it for the additional animals. A couple more points, though. It is extremely difficult and in some places illegal to acquire antivenom for human use. Not to mention, even what is available for animals is often in the range of $400 or more for a 10ml vial. And it can take ten, or twenty, or even more vials to treat a venomous snakebite in a human. While if I could get it, I probably would. But a single vial is not likely to do much good.

Though at least one antivenom is available for the common snakes in the US, most rattlers, water moccasins/cotton mouth (another case of different names for same species), and copperheads, but not for coral snakes, it is not an absolute guarantee that it will work on any given patient. Plus there is the issue of allergic reactions. Even with a careful test prior to an injection, it will be difficult to wait an adequate time before administering the antivenom to someone that a person loves dearly that is at such risk and usually in great pain.

Most bites by poisonous snake do not envenomate. Still does not matter. Even with $4,000 to $8,000 worth of probably illegal antivenom, which only has a shelf life of about 5 years in its dried form and must be replaced regularly, the risk is still extremely high that the victim will not make it. Again, if I could, I would probably try. But here the point is, under no circumstances let even the presence of antivenom distract or divert you from taking the utmost precautions to avoid all snake bites, especially those that might be poisonous.

The same goes for insect and spider bites and stings. You can have all the epi-pens you can afford and can get your hands on. If there are no medical care facilities around, the chances of survival of a serious anaphylactic shock allergic reaction are not very good. Avoid, avoid, avoid. They are just like a snake under a person’s house. You either get rid of it, or it will bite someone eventually. If there is an at-risk person that that could die from stings or bites, every effort should be made to get rid of any of the creatures in the area that are a danger. And the person should be trained on what to do if they come across one of them, in terms of how to react and to act to get away safely before any incidents occur. With the insects, I would strongly recommend everyone have a decent no-see-um headnet available, on their person, if there is any likely risk of running into bees, hornets, wasps and the such.

At least protecting the face, an extremely vulnerable area, might reduce the likelihood of enough stings being made to put a person into a deadly reaction. No guarantees.

Ah. Do not forget fire ants in their ranges. I have seen balls and carpets of them floating on flood waters.

Another note about some events. It does not necessarily have to be a catastrophic event to put people at risk from wild animals. Floods will drive animals, snakes, birds, and other nasty things up and onto any dry surface they can find. Be ready to fend these animals off if you are in a flood and have even a couple of square feet on which to stand. You are likely to have company.

One last word, which I probably should not bring up as it is very, very far-fetched. But it has happened a couple of times in recent years to my knowledge. Be aware of any animal parks, zoos, and private wild animal collections in your area or areas you may be inclinde to travel to in case of problems. And keep an eye out for entertainment news for any circuses that might be even just travelling in your your area or areas of interest.

Exotic animals, including dangerous predators, and just as dangerous large animals, have escaped from zoos and circuses. In a major event there is no telling what the owners of these animals might do if they thought they could not care for them. Just a word to be aware.

Everything in this reply is just my opinion.

Watch for Yellow Jacket Hornet nests in the ground. These hornets will build nests in old animal dens and tunnels. Look for hornets circling close to the ground and don’t allow your shadow to pass over the hole! This signals the hornets to come out and sting anything new in the area of the hole. I escaped a swarm of yellow jackets by stripping off my shirt as I ran. The hornets ignored me and continued to sting the shirt. A Yellow Jacket sting isn’t too bad but ten or twenty at once will cause you to hate life!

Skunks