Acorn

On Tuesday, an elephant killed a British tourist while he was on safari in Kenya. This is tragic, but it�s also really surprising that this hasn�t happen before. Hundreds of people pay thousands of dollars to go on safari to places like Kenya and Tanzania every year. They pay their guides, don their pith helmets and go out in their giant jeeps to shoot a few good pictures and, with every off-road adventure, and every roll of Kodak film, they invade the lives of every animal that has committed no crime other than just being there�and that invasion could prove deadly.

Nature can be beautiful, but it can also be dangerous, and this should not come as a surprise to anyone. For the most part, animals are exactly like people. They like their personal space, and can react hostilely if that space is violated in any way.

People tend to forget that, and run the risk of finding themselves reminded, often violently, by a member of the animal kingdom. You all heard that they are more afraid of you than you are of them, and it�s really true. The majority of animals will only strike at you if they feel like you�ve threatened them or their young.

Much of this knowledge of animals is gained through experience, and that experience plays a huge role in how you treat the animals around you. The treatment of animals has a great deal to do with your comfort level around animals, which, in turn, has a lot to do with where you grew up.

For example, I am a huge animal lover. My house is right outside the Great Swamp. I grew up with wild turkeys, bullfrogs, fire salamanders and hundreds of other species right in my backyard�and I have enjoyed every second of it. My family also had a lot of pets over the years�being the proud owners of two dogs, three cats, an iguana, a cockatiel and an assortment of fish and hamsters throughout my childhood.

Hell, I love cats so much that one of my life goals is to end up as my apartment building�s resident crazy old cat lady.

However, my love of those furry little darlings has always been complimented with a healthy respect for their personal space.

Also, I cannot forget that there are people out there who were not as fortunate as I was. Some people�s experiences with animals end at the glass windows of the local zoo, and this exposure must cast wildlife in a completely different light. I can�t even begin to imagine how that type of upbringing influences how someone acts towards wildlife.

No matter where you grew up, you must remember that much of an animal�s defense of personal space is reactionary. If I get too close to a bird in the swamp, for example, it will react to my presence and fly away on its own. Reacting to and usually running away from a perceived threat is their natural instinct. So what do you do when these instincts become dulled to human presence all together?

This is a serious problem, especially in this area. People are still flocking to the suburbs, and that increases the population to such an extent that developers are willing to take and build on any kind of land. They�ll make mini-malls or condominiums or suburban developments at the drop of a hat�not thinking about the ramifications of the build. As a result, there are fewer and fewer open areas for animals, such as deer, to live comfortably.

You see evidence of this everywhere. Deer wander into the street or take up semi-permanent residence on local lawns, destroying shrubs and other plants.

Squirrels will dart across your path at any moment. And it�s not just the deer and occasional squirrel that are being affected.

Bears have become an increasing problem in New Jersey. A woman I worked with over the summer woke up one morning to find a black bear in her kitchen. In Berkley Heights, less than 20 minutes away, a bear ran straight from the woods on one side of the town, through much of the surrounding suburbia, just to jump into a set of woods on the other side. They don�t mean to be a nuisance.

Bears, especially, are far more afraid of you than you are of them. They suffer from the same problem most animals do. They are running out of places to live.

We are crowding them out of house and tree, and with every new condo that goes up, the respectful distance between ourselves and the wildlife shrinks.

This shrinking is obvious on campus too. Drew�s campus is one of the last few safe havens of greenery, and I don�t have to tell you how much the wildlife takes advantage of it. You notice it as soon as you step on campus�how the squirrels and deer walk around, not even flinching at the students and other members of the Drew community.

The problem with reducing the amount of space animals have in the wild is they further involve themselves in the world of humans. We end up hitting more of them as they try and cross the road and we get them used to the fatty foods we eat, which can completely wreck their diet. Worst of all, we run the risk of putting them in threatening, hostile positions.

Now, I�m not suggesting that most of the wildlife around Drew could be hostile�although I�m told the squirrels may be plotting something�and they are certainly nowhere near the danger level of an elephant. But that doesn�t mean they deserve any less guarded interest than any other wild animal does. So adapt the golden rule, and love your fellow creature like you love yourself, by respecting their right to be left in peace.

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