Cooler temperatures and changing leaves aren’t the only signs of fall in Maine — there are also animals who have had nature’s version of one too many.
Wild berries and other fruit have reached peak ripeness and are falling to the ground. Cold nighttime temperatures concentrate the sugar in the fruit and when it warms up during the day, the sugars break down, forming alcohol. A very potent alcohol.
No matter how high the alcohol content, animals and birds rely on the fruit for their fall diet. They consume it, get drunk and behave oddly. But wildlife experts warn that a tipsy animal or bird looks very much like a diseased animal or bird.
“They are going to have an uncoordinated gait and showing,” said Keel Kemper, regional biologist with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. “There will be something off about their behavior but it’s important to remember that every animal running around in the fall is not hammered.”
Instead, if it’s a mammal, it could be infected with rabies, which can be transmitted to people or domestic animals. Mammals can also carry canine distemper or parvovirus and can pass them on to pets. Birds could have salmonella or Newcastle’s disease, both of which can be transmitted to humans and domestic birds.
Whenever you see an animal behaving strangely, Kemper recommends contacting a licensed rescue organization or the Maine Warden Service.
“There are just so many diseases that infect wildlife,” Kemper said. “You have to assume it’s one of those before you chalk it up to one too many [fermented] chokecherries.”
Some of the more habitual repeat offenders are robins and cedar waxwings, Kemper said. They go after small berries like mountain ash or chokecherries that can contain alcohol. If the birds fly while drunk, it can cause the bird to be injured or killed after flying into a window or crash landing.
“Birds are notorious for denuding a tree of berries,” Kemper said. “If they are drunk, you will see them fly very erratically.”
In some cases, they can’t even get off the ground. Grouse will land in a tree laden with fermented berries, eat their fill and then end up walking away instead of flying. If there is snow on the ground, you can see their staggering footprints leading away from the tree, Kemper said.
Kemper said it’s more common to see smaller species getting drunk.
“The smaller the animal, the smaller the liver,” he said.
Still, with enough fermented fruit, anything is possible.
“You could have a larger animal eat enough fermented apples to get drunk,” Kemper said. “I’ve never seen a drunk moose, but I’m not saying it’s not possible — a little bit of alcohol affects us all.”
