Wildlife rehabilitation is a publicly popular practice, though not without controversy. State wildlife agencies frequently debate the ecological impact of rehabilitation. By analyzing case records, we can clarify and quantify the causes for rehabilitation, species involved, and treatment outcomes. This data would aid regulatory agencies and rehabilitators in making informed decisions, as well as gaining insight into causes of species mortality. In New York State, the Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) has licensed rehabilitators since 1980 and annual reporting is required. In this study, we analyzed 58,185 individual wildlife cases that were attended by New York rehabilitators between 2012 and 2014. These encompassed 30,182 (51.9%) birds, 25,447 (43.7%) mammals, 2,421 (4.2%) reptiles, and 75 (0.1%) amphibians. We identified patterns among taxonomic representation, reasons for presentation to a rehabilitation center, and animal disposition. Major causes of presentation were trauma (n = 22,156; 38.1%) and orphaning (n = 21,679; 37.3%), with habitat loss (n = 3,937; 6.8%), infectious disease (n = 1,824; 3.1%), and poisoning or toxin exposure (n = 806; 1.4%) playing lesser roles. The overall release rate for animals receiving care was 50.2% while 45.3% died or were euthanized during the rehabilitation process. A relatively small number (0.3%) were permanently non-releasable and placed in captivity; 4.1% had unknown outcomes. A comparable evaluation in 1989 revealed that wildlife submissions have increased (annual mean 12,583 vs 19,395), and are accompanied by a significant improvement in release (50.2% in the study period vs 44.4% in 1989) (χ2(1) = 90.43, p < 0.0001). In this manuscript, we aim to describe the rehabilitator community in New York State, and present the causes and outcomes for rehabilitation over a three-year period.

中文翻译：

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纽约州野生动物康复的物种、原因和结果。

野生动物康复是一种公开流行的做法，尽管并非没有争议。国家野生动物机构​​经常辩论恢复的生态影响。通过分析病例记录，我们可以阐明和量化康复的原因、涉及的物种和治疗结果。这些数据将有助于监管机构和康复者做出明智的决定，并深入了解物种死亡的原因。在纽约州，环境保护部 (NYSDEC) 自 1980 年以来已获得许可的康复者，并且需要进行年度报告。在这项研究中，我们分析了 2012 年至 2014 年纽约康复者处理的 58,185 个野生动物个体案例。其中包括 30,182 (51.9%) 只鸟类、25,447 (43.7%) 只哺乳动物、2,421 (4.2%) 只爬行动物 (4.2%) 和 17% ) 两栖动物。我们确定了分类表示、向康复中心展示的原因和动物处置之间的模式。出现的主要原因是创伤（n = 22,156；38.1%）和孤儿（n = 21,679；37.3%）、栖息地丧失（n = 3,937；6.8%）、传染病（n = 1,824；3.1%）和中毒或毒素暴露 (n = 806; 1.4%) 的作用较小。接受护理的动物的总体释放率为 50.2%，而 45.3% 的动物在康复过程中死亡或被安乐死。相对少数 (0.3%) 是永久不可释放并被囚禁的；4.1% 的结果未知。1989 年的一项可比评估显示野生动物提交量有所增加（年均 12,583 对 19,395），并且伴随着释放的显着改善（研究期间的 50.2% 对 1989 年的 44.4%）（χ2(1) = 90.43，p < 0.0001)。在这份手稿中，我们旨在描述纽约州的康复者社区，并展示三年期间康复的原因和结果。