LAWTON – Wildlife is proliferating here and there’s little the city can do about it, for now, the Parks and Recreation Commission was advised recently.
Canada geese have become an invasive species that has spread throughout the U.S. and North America. The birds can be found in all 50 states a nd in every province in Canada.
“They’re all over town,” Parks and Recreation Director Larry Parks noted.
“There were some at my house that hung out for a day or two,” Commissioner Dennis Clippinger said.
Although the birds are quite messy – they leave telltale signs of their pr esence wherever they go – the Migratory Bird Treaty Act protects Canada geese; it is illegal to harm them, their eggs or their nests.
Regulating their numbers is “a bit tricky,” Parks acknowledged.
Commissioner David Tyler said he kept the birds at bay when he placed “about 50” rubber snakes at random locations at Lawton High School several years ago.
Despite the removal of several dozen prairie dogs, they, too, continue to thrive in Lawton.
“I saw nine of them yesterday, and a couple of them about an hour ago,” near his storage unit behind the outfield fence of the Central Middle School softball and baseball fields, David Tyler told Southwest Ledger on Jan. 8.
“You’ll see them shifting around” Elmer Thomas Park because of construction on the new aquatic center, Parks said.
According to Parks, 150 prairie dogs were relocated last year to wildlife management areas in western Oklahoma. One in Alfalfa County “wanted to take 100 of them” but the fall quickly shifted to winter weather recently. “The temperature has to be at le ast 50 degrees” before prairie dogs can be rehomed, Parks said; otherwise the animals “would go into shock” and die. The 100 prairie dogs will be moved “when it gets warmer,” said Caitlin Gatlin, the city’s communications manager.
The Lawton City Council identified a need to r elocate a population of prairie dogs that are living on municipal parkland within the city. The presence of the colony raised concerns about overpopulation, public safety, environmental issues, potential conflicts with planned development, and citizen concerns.
In other matters, Parks said construction of the aquatic center in Elmer Thomas Park is “on time.” The ‘lazy river’ route “has been blasted in” and concrete work on the feature is finished. However, the cold snap interrupted work on the new facility.
In a related issue, “We’re looking for staff ” for the aquatic center. “We’re advertising those job everywhere,” including Facebook and other social media, Parks said. “We have a lot of resumés to go through.”
Parks also said new lights will be installed in the pa rk on Jan. 20.
In another matter, Parks said old playground equipment at several Lawton parks has been dismantled and removed in preparation for new playground equipment, much of which is stored at Elmer Thomas Park.