Every great cause needs a poster child. Where would the Muscular Dystrophy Telethon be without “Jerry’s Kids”? And who could forget the many faces of the March of Dimes?

The natural world has its “poster children,” too. The iconic Smokey Bear grew from the true story of a young cub rescued from a wildfire in the mountains of New Mexico. And Woodsy Owl for years admonished kids and adults alike to, “Give a hoot, don’t pollute.” (Come to think of it, judging by the condition of many of our roadsides, we could use a good dose of Woodsy again. But that’s another topic for another column…)

And now we’ve got a brand-new poster child, only a few days old, right here in Kane County. As far as I’m concerned, she – or maybe he – is the face (or at least lovely, spotted back) for this year’s round of If You Care, Leave Them There – the annual campaign by nature folk to keep wild animal babies wild.