Animals
Raccoons
Raccoons are one of the many small animals living the Temperate Deciduous Forest. They are omnivorous, which means that they eat both meat and plants. Some of their other favorite foods are: crawdads, berries, small aquatic animals, and if living in a semi suburban area, trash.
Bears
Some of the species of bears that live in the Temperate Deciduous Forest are: black bears, grizzly or brown bears, and kodiak grizzly bears. Often stereotyped as vicious, for the most part bears are a fairly peaceful species, but in spring they are very protective of their young. This some times causes aggressive behavior towards humans.
Deer Deer are VERY ABUNDANT! Some deer species are: white tailed deer (rare and elusive), black tailed deer, mule deer, spotted deer, and reindeer, red deer. White tailed deer are the problems because they often eat gardens etc. They are also the most common of the deer species. The deer population is at an all time high, due to the removal of certain predators like the wolves from the Temperate Deciduous Forest.
Skunks They definitely don't smell good! They release a musky smelling liquid when they feel threatend. The skunk is an omnivorous animal.Two kinds of skunks are the striped skunk and the common skunk. It preys upon creatures like mice. It also eats berries and other fruits.
Mice These little creatures come in many varieties. Some mice live in burrows in the ground. They have many, many, predators, such as hawks, eagles, fox, coyotes, wolves, skunks, and wolverines.
Wolves
Once an abundant species wolves have been hunted to near extinction. In the 1950's the government put bounties on all wolves, thus encouraging hunters to shoot them. One of the reasons the deer population is at a record is because of the decimated wolf population.
Moose The moose is a very large animal. A male can weigh as much as 1,000 pounds. It can be as long as 10 feet. and as high as 6 1/2 feet. It is the largest of the deer family. It is herbivorous. It has large feet to help it walk through deep mud and snow. Its upper lip has adapted to its particular eating habits which include pulling leaves off of trees.
Bald Eagle
The bald eagle is our national symbol. It was chosen for this highly regarded position due to the fact it is monogamous. (This means that it mates with one mate for life.) It is often a scavenger. It eats mostly the remains of other animals. An old meaning of the of the word bald is white.
Opossum
The opossum is the only pouched animal on North America. To escape predators the opossum often plays dead. It often stays this way for hours.
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