They’re known as Humphrey, Himmler, Jamal, Walter Cronkite, Trey, Mark Davis Jr., Snowball and Goosey Von Goose by some of the students who have seen them around campus.But the University’s “furry and feathered celebrities”  — the albino squirrel, three-legged squirrel and Herget geese   — face life-threatening danger everyday, according to Phil Stouffer, associate professor in the School of Renewable Natural Resources.”The squirrels thrive and survive with the level of interaction they have with students on campus,” Stouffer said. “The bigger problems are things like cats on campus and other things that are not meant to be here.”Stouffer said the squirrels are natives to campus, and even though they enjoy the food students provide, they encounter danger from student-related disruptions in their habitat.”There are people that feed these feral cats on campus,” Stouffer said.  “They’re an introduced predator that are attacking wild animals and potentially spreading disease, and human involvement is keeping many of them around.”Stouffer said there’s no need to worry because squirrels are not a species people need “to have a conservation interest in,” but to students like Ali McCrosky, anthropology junior, squirrels like the “living legend” albino squirrel need to receive care.”I’ve come into contact with the albino squirrel once, and I was really excited because I thought it was a good omen,” McCrosky said. “If a black cat [is] crossing your path it’s bad. Surely an albino squirrel crossing your path is good, right?”The University does not take care of the animals in any way, said Andres Harris, Facility Services manager.”We just let them be,” Harris said.Stouffer said the geese are not really a wild species since they naturally live near populated areas, so students should not care about their conservation “unless you just really like to look at geese.”Students like Madeline Grant, biology junior, see the effects of the lack of care through “run-over” squirrels across campus and helps by feeding the animals.Other students, though, hold hostility toward some of these animals and feel indifferent about the care they receive.”I really had a bad day, and it was rainy when those geese started charging at me to scare me off,” said Craig Clement, international trade and finance junior. “I started running full force at them to get them to run away, but Papa Goose snapped at my kneecap.  I jumped back and yelped.”Many students like Matt Griffin, pre-nursing senior, had similar stories about goose attacks near Herget.”Once I sat down near the geese, and they came and sat in my lap and started pecking at me,” Griffin said. “Also, I used to crunch up bags of chips from the snack machine to give to the ducks and the geese would come steal them.”Many students’ bad opinions of the geese prevent them from caring for the geese’s safety, but for now Grant George, English junior, made a suggestion.”Do not wear open-toed shoes,” George said.  “They go for the feet.”—Contact Peter Hubbs at [email protected]