Long before we began carving up our state into tidy parcels, wildlife traveled freely, from the northern Red Hills to the southern River of Grass, in search of food, water, shelter and each other.

Today, fences — mostly barbed wire and woven wire — outline a checkerboard of public and private lands, enclosing ranches, farms, pastures and gardens; defining property boundaries; and running for miles and miles along roads that weave through our state.

The only creature that appreciates a barbed wire fence is the loggerhead shrike. In the absence of thorny bushes, this “butcherbird” uses the wire barbs to stash small prey. But for many wild birds and animals these fences present impenetrable and sometimes deadly barriers. Fortunately, such suffering is now preventable.

Artist Dean Gioia, well known for his light infused landscapes, is holding an art sale of cat paintings and landscapes Sunday to benefit St. Francis Wildlife, which often gets called upon to rescue these trapped creatures.

Shortly after dawn, the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission received a call about an injured owl. The wildlife officer called St. Francis Wildlife. When the officer and wildlife rehabilitator arrived, a woman was holding the owl wrapped in a towel. Unfortunately, a barbed-wire fence was holding it too.

They cut off a small section of the wire fence to free it, put the owl in a box, and transported it to the wildlife hospital. St. Francis Wildlife staff removed the wire, cleaned the wound and administered pain meds and antibiotics. Luckily, the wing was not fractured. This was one feisty bird. He gorged himself on rats and chicks and healed quickly.

Six days later, just before sunset, they drove the owl back home. Without hesitation, it took flight and headed straight for the tallest live oak, this time steering clear of the fence.

Animals that wrestle with barbed wire fences usually aren’t as lucky as this great horned owl. A bird in flight is likely scanning the distance, not focusing on close-up objects. Trees are obvious obstacles, but thin strands of wire fence are not. Other low-flying birds hunting rodents or insects, like hawks and songbirds, are also victims. Opossums catch their pouches on the barbs when they try to climb over.

Woven wire fence that reaches all the way to the ground can orphan a fawn when it can’t follow its mother to the other side. Barbed wire placed too close to the ground can snare a fawn, opossum, rabbit, turtle or other small animal and stop it dead in its tracks.

Woven-wire fence topped with barbed wire is the most lethal kind of fence. Deer and other animals that try to jump over this type of fence may tangle a back leg between the top barbed wire and the stiff woven wire or between two top wires that are loose or too close together. Sometimes antlers get tangled. The ornamental spikes that top some wrought iron fences have also proven deadly to leaping deer. Small animals can get caught trying to squeeze through chainlink fences.

Most entanglements go unreported or unnoticed, but in the last two years St. Francis Wildlife has rescued 55 birds and animals that were entangled in or impaled on fences: 18 deer, 4 owls, 7 hawks, 2 turtles, 2 cottontails, 9 songbirds, 1 fox, 1 raccoon, and 12 opossums. These deaths and injuries were largely preventable because wildlife-friendly fencing alternatives exist today.

The University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) has information on “high-tensile wire fencing” that was developed in New Zealand several years ago and is now available in Florida. It is easier to handle, low maintenance and less expensive than barbed wire and more wildlife-friendly: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/AE017.

If removing all barbed wire is not an option, modifications to an existing fence also help wildlife.

• Replacing the top strand with smooth wire or a wood rail and the bottom strand with smooth wire will resolve many problems.

• The top wire should be no more than 42 inches off the ground and separated by at least 12 inches from the second wire to prevent animals jumping the fence, like deer, from catching a foot between the two.

• A smooth bottom wire 18 inches off the ground allows fawns to slip under while containing livestock.

• Conduct daily, early morning inspections of all fences.

• Improve the visibility of the fence with survey ribbon and shiny metal tags, or wrap small sections of white PVC tube or vinyl siding trim strips around the top wire.

Seeing deer, wild turkey and owls sharing a pasture with livestock is one of the blessings of country living. With modern alternatives to conventional barbed wire and government agencies providing education and leadership, these fences, so lethal to wildlife, will hopefully become a distant, sad memory.

Sandy Beck is the education director for St. Francis Wildlife. Contact her at stfranciswildlife@comcast.net.

What: Dean Gioia Art Benefit for St. Francis Wildlife

When: Sunday, Nov. 17, 2-4 p.m.

Where: Dean Gioia's home studio, 3739 Bobbin Brook Way, 

Why: All proceeds from the artist’s paintings of his beloved cats will go directly to the care of the more than 3,000 wild animals St. Francis Wildlife rescues every year. Many of his well-known, light infused landscapes of wild Florida will also be available, and a portion of each of those sales will also be donated to St. Francis Wildlife. It will be a memorable afternoon for kitty and wildlife lovers with spectacular art, wine, and a beautiful hawk. www.stfranciswildlife.org/DeanGioiaArtBenefit.pdf