Naturalist View by Doug May

The Rotary Club of SaddleBrooke enjoyed a presentation by naturalist Jim Cloer, a SaddleBrooke resident.  Jim authors "Naturalist View" in Saddlebag Notes which is focused on fauna in our area.  He presented a slide show with colorful pictures that he and his associates had taken.  These included insects photographed with macro lenses, many species of reptiles, birds, and mammals ranging from packrats to mountain lions and deer.

Twelve years ago Jim began volunteering to lead groups on nature walks in Catalina State Park.  This expanded to include Saturday displays of a variety of locally captured animals supported by many volunteers.  Jim has an office in the park where he keeps fifty snakes and other animals for display.  The larger snakes are fed packrats that Jim traps, and he will voluntarily trap around houses in SaddleBrooke.  However, he must be assured that the packrats have not been exposed to poison before they can be fed to the snakes.  For that reason and the possibility that a natural predator such as an owl or a hawk could eat a poisoned packrat, he opposes the use of poison traps.

The Saturday displays in Catalina State Park will begin on the second Saturday in October and continue through April.  These events are particularly fun and interesting for children.  If SaddleBrooke residents have children visiting and cannot be here on a Saturday, Jim will open his office upon request for a private tour.  He can be reached at 818-3545 or 869-9944.