The News Journal from Wilmington, Delaware • Page A13

SUNDAY NEWS JOURNALDELAWAREONLINE.COM 13A With each step he takes deeper into his basement, ob Hughes greets a different animal. A the bottom of the steps is Peterkins, a mature red ox with vision problems. you he says, before the fox darts. like new people, which is just as Afew steps over, on what was likely once a work bench, Hughes starts filling a blue baby bottle with formula. He and his wife, Margaret Colvin, are the only members of the Delaware Council of Wildlife Rehabili- tators and Educators in Sussex County, others are farther upstate.

The two care for about 90 percent of the wild animals in need from their home near Rehoboth each, Hughes says. Most of the animals they care for are orphaned, which means springtime is the busiest time. The third week in April, their home is just beginning to fill up. Another few steps over, Hughes opens a cage where four raccoons less than three weeks old are squirming around in a fluffy pile. He picks one up, places it along his wrist and starts feeding it.

After a few minutes he puts the raccoon back. Its little belly is about half the size of palm, and full. fat he says in a sweet tone, higher than his low speaking voice. Using a tiny syringe he feeds a squirrel so young it yet opened its eyes. see a lot of animals in here.

This is just getting started. have 12 raccoons before long, about all Ican he says. is the season. This is when the babies are being The four raccoons came to him from a wildlife trapper he knows well. He tried to catch a whole family living in an attic, but the mother ran deeper into the home.

The squirrel came from a call he got from another friend who found it while clearing a lot. run into similar situations himself, running his own tree service. one reason Hughes continues to rehabilitate the animals. something he has done his entire life, starting when people would bring orphaned animals to his father. people knew he had a background with animals, orphaned animals would find their way to our Hughes says.

He has cared for most animals imaginable from otters to groundhogs, both of which he says are sweet. name it, if out there they find their way The raccoons just feel like work now, though, he says. ungrateful things. They get Same for the squirrels. you raise them up big enough to bite you, they stop being The reason he keeps taking animals in is whining in a large cage a baby red fox, about six weeks old.

really like raising the he says. make it They name the animals geographically, so they can remember where to take them back to when time to release them. He picked up Woodland, or named for the Woodland Ferry in Seaford, on April 13 from a family which had thought he might make a nice pet. Woody whines and climbs his cage, and flips over just about everything he can get inside of. what are you Hughes asks.

He scoops the fox puppy up to bring him outside to get some exercise. On the way out, he passes a transitional cage where he put three squirrels he took in the night before. The cage has a few gaps in the ceiling, and the whole point. safe enough from predators that nobody is going to get in, but they can leave whenever ready. They just came in last night but I think they need to be Hughes says.

He sticks his hand on top of a blanket in the cage and feels that at least one squirrel has stuck around. When he puts Woody down in his garden, the puppy is quick to run around and explore things, including the backyard despite, down a jump down a step twice as tall as him. little Hughes says. Woody will be rehabilitated until August, the rac- oons will stay until October, and the fast-growing baby squirrel can leave in a few weeks. Members of group are all-volunteer, he says.

You need to have space, time and money to rehabilitate wildlife. The expensive formula that these guys eat, the bags and bags of dog food they eat through the summer, all on he says. he motivation is when he sees them released again. we handle these orphaned animals no one else he says. either going to die, or somebody not qualified to rehabilitate them is going to That can lead to malnourished animals, or rabies for he unqualified and unvaccinated amateur.

If unsure whether an animal needs help, there are a few things to look for, Hughes says. Baby animals such as squirrels, foxes and raccoons generally be by themselves. The same true for rab- its, however. you have a question about whether the rabbits are being cared for, since the mother actually sit on he nest, you can lay a couple pieces of string or ribbon across the nest and when Mom comes to feed them in the evening disturb that, and know been he says. Hughes rehabilitate birds, but says if you see one out of its nest, it should be put back.

Unlike rac- oons and squirrels, birds pick up their young and return them to a nest. best for everyone involved if you handle an animal more than simply returning it to a nest, Hughes says. If you need assistance with an animal that might orphaned or in need of rehabilitation, he can be reached at 302-228-8733. Contact Rachael Pacella at Couple take care wild animals at home Among the creatures are a ox, raccoons and a squirrel RACHAEL PACELLA DELMARVA MEDIA GROUP RACHAEL MEDIA GROUP Wildlife Rehabilitator Bob Hughes holds Woody, an orphaned fox, as the two go for a walk outside. RACHAEL MEDIA GROUP Woodland the orphaned fox wanders around Bob Hughes' ront yard to get some exercise.

RACHAEL MEDIA GROUP Apile of baby raccoons sit in a cage. They were orphaned hen they were found in an attic. RACHAEL MEDIA GROUP An orphaned squirrel is so young it opened its eyes yet. RACHAEL MEDIA GROUP Wildlife Rehabilitator Bob Hughes feeds an orphaned raccoon. About one-quarter of radio dial has been revamped in recent months as new owners have sought to put their own stamp on the market.

The cascade of changes began when Great Scott Broadcasting exited the market, breaking up its eight FM and two AM stations into separate packages that it old to two radio corporations. I September, the company sold four FM and two AM stations and two translator stations to Adams Radio of Delmarva Peninsula for The sale included WGBG-FM, WJWK-AM, WJWL-AM, WKHI-FM, WOCQ-FM and WZBH-FM. In February, Great Scott sold its four remaining stations WJKI-FM, WKDB-FM, WXSH-FM and WZEB- FM to The Voice Radio for $1.7 million, according to Federal Communication Commission filings. The sales came after Great president, Mitch Scott, died in March 2013 after battling leukemia. The Georgetown-based broadcasting company was found- by his parents in Sussex County in the 1960s.

oth buyers are new to the Delmarva market. And oth immediately set out to turn their stations into a nd operations that is, controlled by local staff. hat enables announcers to break in to the program- ing with local news and information, said Ron Stone, EO of Adams Minnesota-based parent company, Adams Radio Group. Salisbury-Ocean City marks he fourth market cluster after Las Cruces, ew Mexico; Fort Wayne, Indiana; and northwestern Indiana. are people that would like to think the Intern et is the end of radio and Stone said.

or a live-and-local radio company, going to sur- ive ased on a programming recommenda- ions, Adams has made several, if mostly subtle, hanges to its new stations, Stone said. OCQ (aka remains a hip-hop and format, WGBG is still classic rock and WZBH (aka is still a rock station but their playlists have been and the number of commercials reduced. The biggest overhaul came at WKHI (aka Country 107.7”), which turned into a simulcast of WGBG, Stone said. His plans call for boosting the signal power at WKHI and WZBH within the next 90 days. The 107.7 station will remain classic rock; the format for its sister station at 98.5 (the home of the original WGBG) has yet to be determined.

A lso in the works: moving the local headquarters rom Georgetown to Salisbury behind the shopping center. The move reflects larger advertising base, Stone said. For its part, The Voice Radio is new to the industry but not its largest shareholder. Edwin Andrade has been in the radio business for a quarter-century, including a stint as host of a talk show called on WGMD-FM from 2004-2010. In the interim, he leased a pair of stations, WJWL (which eventually went to Adams) and WXSH.

WXSH, formerly a simulcast of Spanish hits, and WJKI, formerly a simulcast of BGB, became a classic rock station. KDB has become new home. WZEB, form erly a simulcast of WZBH, has transformed into an urban station branded as 101.7” and feat uring much of the on-air staff formerly with WOCQ. A ndrade said The slogan is that a wned Contact Jeremy Cox at New owners make changes to Delmarva radio stations JEREMY COX DELMARVA MEDIA GROUP STAFF PHOTO BY VANESSA JUNKIN Adams Radio Group President and CEO Ron Stone, left, is shown with Market Manager Phil Locascio outside of the location where the group will be moving in the NorthGate Business Park off Naylor Mill Road in Salisbury..